Kathy Havers wins FPA community service award

Melbourne-based Kathy Havers has won the Financial Planning Association Future2 Community Service Award.

Melbourne-based Kathy Havers has won the Financial Planning Association of Australia’s 2016 Future2 Community Service Award for the second time, after winning it in 2014.

Havers, who works for Catalyst Financial Group, won the award for her volunteer work with remote indigenous communities and for helping families living with disabilities.

The award recognises FPA members who have made a contribution to improving the circumstances of the most socially excluded or financially disadvantaged members of the community in a pro bono, volunteering or community service capacity.

Havers is director of the not- for-profit Kindred Spirits Foundation, which supports Aboriginal people and their communities. She has also supported Bulleen Heights Special School for children with autism, as a school councillor and as president.

HR mentors

The Australian Human Resources Institute has opened applications for its 2017 mentor program, for those looking for someone to help throughout their business career, as well as those wanting to offer services.

The program matches experienced HR experts with upcoming practitioners, students and those wanting to transition into HR. The pair will spend time together throughout the year and the mentor will offer advice when needed.

The 12-month program, which runs from April, matches 700 pairs over two intakes annually, and has been designed to assist those seeking opportunities for career and professional development by creating mentoring relationships.

Participants must be AHRI members or take out a membership. Applications close on February 28. Details: [e-mail].

BUILDING RESILIENCE

The South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute will hold a two-day workshop on building resilience from February 20, aimed at people who can benefit from learning skills for dealing with challenges.

SAHMRI’s Wellbeing and Resilience Centre will run the workshop in conjunction with TechWerks. It is being shaped as a course promoting health and behavioural change strategies as an introduction for people wishing to strengthen personal skills, and for organisational leaders interested in increasing staff wellbeing through future workforce projects.

Details: [e-mail]

LANGUAGE THE KEY

Ahead of International Mother Language Day on Tuesday, employment provider Workskil Australia is encouraging employers to embrace diversity and consider people for roles who may not speak English as their first language.

The organisation, which has offices nationally, has 52 staff in its Sydney southwest office who speak 23 languages.

Chief executive Nicole Dwyer says the multilingual workplace reflects the region’s unique mix of cultures, and has helped hundreds of refugees and migrants to establish new lives.

“One of the hardest parts of settling into a new country can be finding work and making a living,” Dwyer says.

“Communication is a key factor in this. Being able to communicate with job seekers in their native language is a huge comfort to new Australians.

“It also helps to break down the language, race and religion barriers to employment.”

She says that if language difficulties are preventing jobseekers from getting work, they should consider enrolling in programs that provide language, literacy and numeracy training.