The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) has won two categories at the Australian HR Awards, being named Australian HR Team of the Year (>1000 employees) and jointly winning Employer of Choice (Public Sector & NFP sector).
The awards recognise the achievements of human resources professionals, teams and employers at a national level. AFCA was named Employer of Choice (Public Sector & NFP sector) with The Disability Trust, a not-for-profit NDIS provider.
“This recognition reflects our dedication to creating a culture of excellence and respect, and we’re honoured to be recognised alongside The Disability Trust,” said AFCA Chief Ombudsman and Chief Executive Officer David Locke.
“We listen to our people, respond to their feedback and invest in their growth and development. We know that AFCA can only deliver excellent services if our people are happy, and engaged, and are valued and supported.”
In the past 12 months, AFCA’s People and Culture team has made significant progress towards its Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging strategy three-year action plan. AFCA announced enhancements to leave entitlements such as increased paid parental leave, and flexible public holiday leave. AFCA also introduced Women’s+ Health Leave, to support women’s unique health needs across all life stages. This includes, but is not limited to, menstruation, fertility care, endometriosis and menopause.
“It is tremendous that AFCA’s People and Culture team have been recognised in this way. They are an extraordinary group of HR professionals, led by EGM Mathew Paine, who are innovative and forward thinking. They have enabled AFCA to lead the way and create an organisation that both attracts and retains the very best people,” Mr Locke said.
In addition, five Employee Resource Groups have been established to help foster the sense of belonging among AFCA’s people, particularly those with disabilities, individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds, members of the LGBTQ+ community, women and those with family and carer responsibilities.
AFCA also has several initiatives that support employee health and wellbeing including mental health training, a calendar of health and wellbeing initiatives, enhanced leave benefits, access to ClassPass and the ‘Take 3' initiative – 3 hours paid time off work every week to rest and recharge.
“Ensuring that our people are supported and valued has driven greater productivity, improved organisational performance, higher employee engagement, lower attrition and better outcomes for the communities we serve,” Mr Locke added.
The awards were hosted by HRD, the primary resource for HR professionals in the country.
Published: 16 September 2024
Media enquiries: media@afca.org.au
About AFCA
The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) is a non-government ombudsman service providing free, fair and independent dispute resolution to individual consumers and small businesses when they are not able to resolve complaints directly with financial firms in banking and finance, insurance, investments and advice, and superannuation. AFCA aims to help the parties reach agreement, but it can issue decisions that are binding on financial firms.
