Villa Maria

 
Business Nature
Not for Profit
Industry
Community Services
Product/Service Overview
Villa Maria is a not-for-profit values-based organisation providing quality services and life enhancing opportunities for older people and children and adults with a disability. Established in 1907, Villa Maria has grown to become one of Victoria’s largest providers of disability, education and senior services, with more than 60 programs supporting 5,000 people in 42 locations. Services offered by Villa Maria range from specialist education and early childhood intervention for children with disabilities or developmental delays, to community based and in-home support services for older people and people with a disability, carer respite options and residential aged care. Every day, more than 950 staff and 300 volunteers respond to the unique needs of the people and families we support with openness, innovation, creativity and flexibility.
Number of Employees
100 to 999
Locations
VIC
Website www.villamaria.com.au


Our Work Life Balance Philosophy

Flexible work arrangements are imperative to the way Villa Maria provides its services. With a need to provide support 24 hours a day 7 days per week, providing flexible work arrangements is the only method in which Villa Maria can ensure that employees achieve the work/life balance they seek.


Villa Maria believes that the ‘one size fits all’ approach is ineffective when it comes to Family Friendly and Flexible Workplace initiatives. At Villa Maria our employees have varying needs and we recognise that flexibility options need to be continuously reviewed and improved to allow a wider group to take advantage of the benefits and maintain their balance between work and family life.


Our Organisation Benefits

With many career pathways, learning and development initiatives, education and training opportunities, mentoring/induction programs and the opportunity to work with dynamic and committed teams, as an employee at Villa Maria job satisfaction is a given.


Advice to Other Employers

Listen, talk and take on board what feedback you receive from your employees. Only then can you truly become an Employer of Choice.


Casual opportunities

Casual opportunities are varied across Villa Maria.

Job Sharing

In roles where there is a requirement for a full time employee, job share options are seriously considered.

Flexible Working Hours

Employees can access flexible start and finish times for several reasons. The most common request is around 'family commitments' such as dropping and picking up children to and from school, taking a child to the doctor or caring for an elderly relative. All requests are taken onboard and measures are taken to support the individual as much as possible to find a balance between home and work life.

Part time opportunities

As majority of the Villa Maria workforce is part time, considerations to changes from full time work are seriously considered. Nine day fortnights are common across Villa Maria as are four day working weeks.

Work from Home

With the flexibility of working from home in most office based roles, this allows for staff to coordinate their family responsibilities around their work responsibilities. In other roles where working from home is possible, individual arrangements are made with staff.


Purchasable Annual Leave

The 48/52 model of employment is available to permanent staff. All applications will be considered based on the operational needs and requirements of each program. Additionally staff also have the option of taking up 50/52 modes of employment.

Study leave

Study Leave and Assistance Program: Further education assistance is available to all staff that have been working for 12 months in a permanent role, unless otherwise negotiated at time of commencement.

Volunteer/Community leave

Paid Community Services Leave: Villa Maria supports staff who volunteer to community based emergency services such as the Country Fire Authority and State Emergency Services by providing them with paid Volunteer Leave to respond to emergency situations.

Paid Parental Leave

6 weeks paid Maternity Leave and 1 week paid Paternity Leave with the opportunity to take paid Parental Leave at half pay over double the period.


Childcare

Child Care Referral Service: This service provides staff at no cost access to thorough and personalised search services relating to all areas of childcare.

Employee Assistance Program

Free and confidential counselling service available to all employees.

Wellness Program

Health Safety and Wellbeing Program.

Breastfeeding Policy

Villa Maria is committed to reinforcing a family-friendly workplace and is working toward accreditation with the Australian Breastfeeding Association. This will inturn assist in meeting the needs of women who are breastfeeding, pregnant and potentially pregnant.

Health/Well-being allowances/discounts

Meals and Entertainment Allowance: Villa Maria is able to offer all permanent or permanent part-time employees an opportunity to take an exempt fringe benefit (non taxable benefit) in the form of a meal-entertainment and/or accommodation allowance. The meal-entertainment/accommodation is approved by the ATO as an exempt fringe benefit there is no tax paid on the benefit and it is not required to be reported on the employees PAYG Payment Summary of Earnings (Group Certificate). As an FBT exempt item Meal Entertainment is not restricted to an FBT year.

AGED CARE REFERRAL SERVICE:
This service is designed to help take reduce the stress that individuals experience when it comes to finding Aged Care and support for a loved one. The referral service provides advice, information and referral services.

SALARY PACKAGING:
Villa Maria provides permanent staff with the opportunity to maximise their salary by being able to salary package/sacrifice. Items that can be packaged by are not limited to, include:
• Crèche or school fees
• Health Insurance
• HECs
• Mortgage
• Personal loans
• Rent


Position

Manager

Employment Status
Full Time
Average Weekly Working Hrs

40

Gender
Male
Age Group
41 - 50

I don't want to WISH I had been IN the stories of family and friends; I want to TELL the stories because I am in them.

How important is work life balance to you and why?

Very important because I have a family, a garden, a mind and music.

What work life balance practices have you used that are offered by your organisation?

I work from home one day each week. There is the option of working from home at other times. The work from home day is scheduled for each Monday, however; there is flexibility with the work from home day depending on changes to either work or personal circumstances.

What has been the major benefit to your life due to work life balance practices that you have accessed through your work?

The major benefit has been that I have had more time to spend with my wife and our wee baby.

Personal Benefits

The effect of sitting in traffic does not exist for me on a Monday!
I get to work on time, I get to music on time and I have lunch in my garden.

Family Benefits

By having no travel time, my wife and I have been much more able to give each other the time and space to engage in our own well being practices such as exercise and music. Also, we all have breakfast and dinner together.

Organisation Benefits

A full day with no meetings and no distractions means that I have clear, dedicated time allocated to effectively working on chunky jobs, ticking off my small jobs list and... shrinking my Inbox! Also, the more peaceful I feel, the more productive I am.

Community Benefits

I am now more regularly involved with a local group promoting music initiatives in the area.

How has your organisation managed to achieve the benefits of work life balance?

Initially, we spent time with people exploring job satisfaction. Using this information, and knowledge gained through research, we actively promoted a culture of flexibility. Many aspects of this culture have since been built into formal documents and practices.

What is unique about the work life balance practices that are offered by your organisation?

The unique aspect is that the practices are actively promoted and encouraged through the formal support structure across the organisation.

Do you feel that work life balance initiatives are available to most staff?

Yes, work/life balance initiatives are available to most staff in varying forms. Obviously, all options cannot be available to all roles, however; we do explore the possible options with people who wish to undertake such exploration.

Can you offer any advice to others who want to manage their work life balance better?

My advice is to start by making a clear plan that defines what work/life balance looks like to you. The next step is to explore ways to bring that plan to life with people whose involvement will be important.

Position

Quality and Documentation Systems Manager

Employment Status
Full Time
Average Weekly Working Hrs

38

Gender
Female
Age Group
31 - 40

Managing your work life balance is up to you, Villa Maria seriously considers all proposed options, they truly want you to be happy and less stressed.

How important is work life balance to you and why?

Work life balance is vital for me as I work full time, I have a six month old daughter and I am pregnant expecting my second child.

What work life balance practices have you used that are offered by your organisation?

I have been offered the opportunity to work from home which I do once or twice a week. I have flexible work hours so I prefer to start early and leave early which is more convenient for me. When I returned to work from maternity leave I was breast feeding my daughter and needed to express during the day. My employer set up a private and quiet room for me to use whenever I needed to during my working day. I was also offered the opportunity to bring my daughter into work with me as it is always hard to leave your beautiful baby every day.

What has been the major benefit to your life due to work life balance practices that you have accessed through your work?

The major benefits to my life due to work life balance is that I was able to breastfeed my daughter for a longer period. I am able to continue to work full time and financially this takes alot of pressure off our family. Working from home enables me to see more of my daughter and I do not feel as though I am missing out on her little achievements. I do not feel as guilty as I do not have to leave her everyday. I am able to cope better with managing household duties, caring for my family and working efficiently at work. I am very grateful to be provided with these opportunities as it takes the pressure off me as a new mum and allows me the flexibility to fit my full time work in around my family.

Personal Benefits

If I have had little sleep during the night because my baby daughter has not been sleeping I can sleep in longer in the morning and come to work later. I can choose what day I work from home and the frequency of days if I need to.

Family Benefits

Working from home enables me to spend time with my daughter, see her achievements and spend time with her. When I work from home I am also able to put the washing in the washing machine, hang it out, just do some household duties that do not take a long time if you are home but can't be done when you are at work.

Organisation Benefits

Because my organisation is supportive of work life balance, I am able to continue being a committed, productive and loyal employee who loves my job and the organisation I work for.

Community Benefits

Having work life balance has enabled our family to be involved in our parish community.

How has your organisation managed to achieve the benefits of work life balance?

I believe our organisation has managed to achieve the benefits of work life balance because they have consulted their employees as a whole and individually as employees situations arise. I was asked what I would need and what would make my life easier to enable me to continue work and manage my family life.

What is unique about the work life balance practices that are offered by your organisation?

The organisation gives you the employee decision making opportunities around work life balance. The opportunities are as varied and flexible as your imagination and creativity, it is what is important to you as an employee.

Do you feel that work life balance initiatives are available to most staff?

Yes I am aware that work life balance initiatives are available to all staff.

Can you offer any advice to others who want to manage their work life balance better?

The only advice I can give is come and work for Villa Maria because how you want to manage your work life balance is up to you, all scenarios are seriously considered by the organisation, they truly want you to be happy and less stressed.


Key Roles


For current job opportunities, visit http://www.villamaria.com.au/careers.html