Employee Performance and Conduct Education Employee Performance and Conduct “Navigating the Maze”

Key Policies Owned by EPAC Complaints policy and procedures Code of Conduct Responding to Allegations Against Employees in the Area of Child Protection Guidelines for the Management of Conduct and Performance Fair Warning, Fair Action All Improvement Programs Public Interest Disclosures Policy

Who’s Who in the Zoo! Staff Efficiency and Conduct Team Complaints & Feedback Team Six Investigation Teams Two deployed Deputy Principals One deployed Principal Two Legal Officers Disciplinary officers - Executive Director, EPAC - Director, Staff Efficiency and Conduct - Directors, Investigations

Role of EPAC To provide advice about child protection allegations against employees, misconduct matters, issues of poor performance, and complaints management inc FWFA To conduct investigations of allegations of misconduct against employees To oversight employee Improvement Programs To undertake disciplinary and remedial action To manage Public Interest Disclosures To undertake required external reporting to ICAC and NSW Ombudsman and OCG

Matters not handled by EPAC School based complaints that are not child protection allegations or misconduct Grievances between staff Industrial matters that are not misconduct Student on student bullying or abuse Child protection matters that do not involve an allegation against an employee Reviews of complaints

If your school receives a child protection allegation against an employee Ring EPAC within 24 hours – Duty Investigator Contact the FACS Helpline if risk of significant harm has been assessed Contact the police if a criminal offence may have occurred Ensure the student’s parents are notified as soon as possible

If a staff member’s performance is of concern Contact SECT and speak to an officer well before determining to put the officer on an Improvement Program Ensure appropriate additional support and guidance has been provided to the officer and has been documented Ensure clear feedback has been provided to the officer. Do they have a performance and development plan? If a probationary employee, ensure sound induction as well as additional guidance and support has been provided and documented Ensure any personal issues that may impact on the officer’s performance have been explored

Performance Management Cycle Plan Support Evidence Feedback

If there is an allegation of misconduct (not child protection) Inform your principal Principal to contact EPAC and speak to a Duty Investigator Contact police if the matter could be a criminal matter Seek advice from the Director, Investigations (EPAC) if other staff are requesting Public Interest Disclosant status Director, Public Schools should be informed

Fair warning – Fair Action Process designed to address continuing low level disruptive conduct There must be a pattern of similar conduct A clear process must be followed that is: - procedurally fair - gives the officer a right of reply - incorporates clear written directions

Dealing with complaints at the school level Treat all matters seriously Be timely Be procedurally fair and respectful Complaints do not need to be in writing and can be anonymous Consider whether the matter may constitute misconduct The complaint handler must not be a party to the complaint and should be more senior than the subject of the complaint

As a Manager how do you assess the appropriate process? Clarify the issue or issues Ensure you have been given all the information Determine what policies or procedures apply Seek appropriate advice Determine the level of seriousness Ensure the matter is dealt with in a timely way Don’t overreact!!

What should a SAM “do”? Inform your principal if you have concerns about an employee Provide all relevant information about the employee or the situation Monitor staff continuously – problems don’t go away Advise EPAC as early as possible if planning a program or dealing with FWFA Make sure you have documented your concerns and have raised them with the officer Follow processes correctly Work with EPAC staff – if you ask for advice, act on it…..

What are the “don’ts”? Don’t shop around for advice Don’t arrange for an employee to be removed from school without having a plan Don’t rush into giving lawful directions without exploring other options Don’t delay notifying parents or FACS Don’t ignore poor performance or misconduct

E-learning online resource

Who to contact in EPAC Executive Director – Jane Thorpe 9266 8783 Director, SECT – Veronica Kapsimali 9266 8729 Director, Investigations – Rob Easton 9244 5203 Directors, Child Protection Investigations David Wright-Smith Sarah Parry Nicole Macfarlane Amanda Sharwood/Malcolm Barnett Kelly Muirhead Director, Complaints & Feedback – Katharine Ovenden Reception: 9266 8070