Equal Employment Opportunity Annual Report – 1992 Overview

The Reserve Bank has had an equal opportunity program in place since 1985 and has just completed its third two-year plan.

Earlier plans developed specific EEO objectives, raised staff awareness of EEO principles, produced a series of useful statistical indicators, and aimed to improve integration between EEO principles and people management in the Bank. In addition to maintaining this broad thrust, the 1990–92 plan also aimed to increase career opportunities for women and those in designated groups, to ensure that personnel policies were non-discriminatory, and to foster a work environment in which individual differences were accepted and valued. Emphasis was also placed on keeping staff informed on EEO matters and on progress in implementing the EEO plan.

The various strategies developed and implemented during 1991 and 1992 to achieve the plan's objectives are currently being evaluated and will be reported more fully in next year's report. The evaluation is occurring against the background of a major restructuring of the Bank which commenced in 1990 and has been completed only recently. This process has involved a thorough reassessment of the resources needed to perform the Bank's functions, the introduction of a new broad banded salary classification system, changes to selection and appeal procedures, new appraisal arrangements and a significant reduction in staff numbers. Hundreds of jobs were redesigned and over 950 appointments made to “restructured” positions.

This process has decentralised many personnel decisions and, at the same time, enhanced principles of openness, merit and equity within the Bank. Despite some disruption, the Bank's program of equal employment opportunity was pursued actively during the year, although in a few cases rescheduling of some specific strategies was required.

Note Printing Australia (NPA), a separate division of the Bank which had completed its own restructure a little earlier, also put in place a number of specific EEO-related policies during the year.

Details of the EEO initiatives and achievements of the past twelve months are presented in the following report.