DESBT Connections Update
Safe Work Month
Safe Work Month raises community and industry awareness about the importance of work health and safety, and best practice rehabilitation and return to work. But this is not something we should work on just in October – safer, healthier workplaces are for everyone, every day.
Get involved by promoting safe work in your workplace or participate in the many events organised by Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.
There’s something for everyone with programs covering topics like good work design, incident preparedness, creating a positive culture around workplace safety and wellbeing and more.
To learn more, access events or view resources to promote Safe Work Month, visit WorkSafe.qld.gov.au.
Strengthen your small business with a new online training course for work health and wellbeing
The rise of COVID-19 brought unprecedented financial and emotional pressures to many workplaces, particularly small businesses. These pressures can have a major impact on work health, safety and wellbeing.
The work health and wellbeing interactive course has four modules that focus on how to embed work health and wellbeing intobusiness systems to improve the health of your workers and workplaces.
Small business owners, managers, health and wellbeing coordinators, human resources staff and health and safety advisors will all benefit from this course.
Head to the Work Safe website to grow your skills around how to integrate work health, safety and wellbeing into your small business.
Queensland Mental Health Week
Queensland Mental Health Week is being held between 8-16 October. The week focuses on the importance of mental health and wellbeing, and reducing the stigma associated with mental illness.
Protecting the psychological health of workers is just as important as protecting their physical health. During your career, it’s highly likely you will work with or manage someone with a mental health condition.
In fact, 1 in 5 Australians experience a mental health condition in any year and 1 in 2 Australians will experience a mental health condition in a lifetime.
Get involved! Attend one of the many free events held during the week to show your commitment to building mentally healthy workplaces, nurture your teams’ capabilities and improve your awareness of psychological health and safety and early intervention.
One way the Queensland Government is supporting Queenslanders’ better mental health is through new small business wellness coaches. We have partnered with the Queensland Mental Health Commission, the Queensland Small Business Commissioner, and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland to engage six new small business wellness coaches located across Queensland.
These new coaches join the network of small business financial counsellors and tourism financial counsellors to provide a complete package of support for small businesses. Keep an eye out for more information about how to access these Small Business Wellness Coaches in your area.
Remember, if you or someone you know needs support, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636.
Visit Mental Health Week website
Train and Retrain Staff with Micro-credentialling Courses
With skills and staff shortages hampering many tourism businesses, the Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) and Queensland Government are providing industry operators and their staff with access to hundreds of free of charge tourism and hospitality-related online courses.
Micro-credentialling courses are flexible, bite-sized courses delivered online. They’re a great way to upskill and onboard new and current employees inhouse.
Staff can be trained in as little as 40-minutes with industry-specific skills. The learnings provided by the courses are helping to fill critical skill gaps and improve staff retention.
Business Planning Course
Future-proof your business with an online Business Planning Course, delivered by University of the Sunshine Coast
Micro and small businesses form the foundation of the Australian economy, employing approximately 44 percent of the Australian workforce and contributing around one-third of Australia’s GDP. As approximately 97 percent of Australian organisations are categorised as micro and small businesses it is critical that this industry sector is supported in being successful.
The Business Planning Course is free and designed to provide local business owners with a clear understanding of the key factors that underpin their success and are critical to their long-term survival.
Participating in this course, comprised of a series of workshops, provides a platform for business owners to survive and thrive by adopting and implementing strategic management principles, thereby lowering the rate of business failure.
NB: Businesses located outside of USC course locations are able to participate via registering to complete the course online. All dates and course outlines are in the link below. This course compliments the Mentoring for Growth Program. Mentoring for Growth
The Business Planning Course is proudly supported by the Queensland Department of Employment, Small Business and Training.
Check eligibility, dates, course information and registration
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