Appropriate Workplace Conduct

Workplaces are governed by several pieces of legislation, known as Acts. Acts can either be administered at the Federal or the State Government level. Acts are further supported by Regulations and Industry Codes of Practice. At the workplace level, there are Codes of Conduct and Policies & Procedures.

1. Acts - Formal descriptions of laws created by Parliament (Federal or State). Enforceable by the judicial system (police/courts).
2. Regulations - Specific guidelines on how to apply the laws contained in an Act. Not usually enforceable by law in their own right.
3. Industry Codes of Practice - Developed by industry associations. Best practice guidelines for the industry. Usually linked to membership or registration and may be audited.
4. Workplace Code of Conduct - Specific to individual workplaces. Outlines ethical work practices. Often includes the business Vision and Mission.
5. Policies and Procedures - Provides employees with guidelines on completing tasks.

Most of the legislation and regulations relevant to the animal care industry are administered at the State Government level. The Federal Government mainly concerns itself with the welfare of animals being live-exported internationally and export-accredited abattoirs. This means that there is some variety regarding the different stipulations in each state. If your workplace operates over numerous states or territories ensure you are familiar with the relevant laws in your particular state. Industry codes of practice are more likely to be administered at a national level.

The main Acts (and a broad summary of their contents) that may be relevant to you are related to:

• Animal Welfare / Prevention of Cruelty - Welfare principles, Humane slaughter, Research animals, Captivity requirements, Cruelty prevention, and Penalties.
• Workplace Health and Safety - Employer and employee duty of care, Incident notification, Hazard identification, Inspection, and Enforcement measures.
• Environmental Protection - Conservation, Wildlife protection, Water, air and noise pollution, Hazardous waste, and Penalties.

Click on the icon in your relevant state/territory on the image below, in the pop-up box refer to the website link to view/download a copy of your local Animal Welfare / Prevention of Cruelty, Workplace Health, and Safety, or Environmental Protection legislation.

The applicable legislation/regulations include:

• Privacy (State-administered) - Collection and storage of personal information, Use, and disclosure of personal information.
• Anti-Discriminatory Laws (State-administered with some elements that come under Federal administration) - Protection against discrimination based on age, disability, race, sex, intersex status, gender identity, and sexual orientation.

Examples of an Industry Code of Practice include:

• Pet Industry Association of Australia (PIAA) - National Code of Practice.
• Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) - Members Code of Professional Conduct.
• Australian Animal Welfare - Standards and Guidelines (for livestock).

Minimum pay rates and conditions of employment within a particular industry are outlined within a Modern Award. These documents are part of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Federally administered) and the National Employment Standards (Federally administered), which ensure that all workers (in every industry) are treated fairly and paid correctly.

You must be aware of the contents of the Modern Award for your industry or know how to access the necessary information. If you believe you are not being paid correctly or are being treated unfairly, the Fair Work Ombudsman website provides information and support regarding Awards and Employee Entitlements: fairwork.gov.au

The current Modern Award covering people in the Animal Care Industry is the Animal Care and Veterinary Services Award 2020. Although you may be employed under a different type of award if your workplace is in a more specialised field.

You may also be employed under an Enterprise Agreement (EA), also known as an Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA). These agreements are formed at the workplace (enterprise) level between the employer, the employees, and often their union. It sets out the terms and conditions of employment. EA's cannot pay less than the minimum wage in the applicable Modern Award and often they have terms, conditions, perks, and pay rates that are higher than the award.

A Code of Conduct is developed by an individual organisation and often outlines, in one document, how the business maintains its ethical work practices.  Examples of ethical work practices are Honesty; Integrity; Promise-keeping & Trustworthiness; Loyalty; Fairness; Concern for others; Respect for others; Law-abiding; Commitment to excellence; Leadership; Reputation and morale; Accountability.

Staff are often required to read and agree to abide by the specifications of the Code of Conduct which may outline behavioural and presentation standards for employees. Smaller organisations may not have a separate Code of Conduct rather individual ethical work practices may simply be embedded into individual policies and procedures.

Policies and procedures are developed by an individual organisation or even a specific department within that organisation and usually relate to a specific topic or individual task. They provide overarching guidelines and step-by-step processes respectively.

Policies

Standards or regulations put in place by an organisation. They can be presented in hard or digital copy and should always be accessible within the workplace. Policies often stipulate how the workplace will be implementing and abiding by relevant legislation, for example, a workplace may have a Privacy Policy or an Anti-Discrimination / Equal Opportunity Policy. Generally, workplace policies are implemented by a set of procedures.

Examples of workplace policies that you may be required to abide by are:

• Animal Welfare - Includes feeding and watering, animal handling, housing setup and maintenance, exercise, and socialisation needs.
• Environmental Sustainability - Includes proper use and disposal of potentially hazardous substances, and reducing energy/water use.
• Infection Control - includes clinical waste disposal, handwashing techniques, and aseptic technique.
• Cleaning and Hygiene - includes cleaning schedules, cleaning techniques, cleaning equipment, and sanitising agents.
• Workplace Health and Safety - includes the duty of care for employers and employees, evacuation procedures, and hazard/risk control.
• Anti-Discrimination and Anti Bullying - includes the protection of employees regardless of disability, race, gender, religion, nationality, sexual orientation.
• Privacy - Includes provisions for the protection of employee and client personal information.

Procedures

Otherwise known as Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's) are detailed documents that outline how to safely and effectively complete a task step-by-step. SOP's are easy to follow and include details such as potential health and safety issues and control methods for minimising the risk associated with potential hazards. SOP's ensure that existing staff members are completing workplace tasks with consistency and that all new staff members are aware of organisational standards and requirements. SOP's should be readily available to all staff members and consulted when completing an unfamiliar task.

Task Checklists

Checklists are used in the workplace to ensure that certain duties such as maintenance and/or cleaning tasks are completed as required. Task lists may be divided into separate checklists based on the frequency with which the task is required to be completed (for example; daily, weekly, or monthly lists) or they can be divided into separate room lists. For example; a veterinary clinic may have separate checklists for tasks to be completed in the surgery room, consulting room, waiting area, etc… When you are working from a checklist you must consult your workplace SOP's to effectively complete any unfamiliar tasks. You must date and sign your name once you complete any task from a checklist so your colleagues are aware that the task has been completed for that day, week, or month. This ensures others are not wasting time by repeating cleaning or maintenance tasks.

A roster is generally a list or plan of hours to be worked by each individual employee on any given day. Rosters exist to ensure an appropriate number of employees will be available for the duration of an organisation's trading hours. Rosters are generally produced by senior staff members or management in consultation with employees. It is in the best interest of management to ensure a healthy work-life balance can be maintained around an employee's work hours. Clear and detailed rosters ensure there is no confusion and all employees will be present for their shifts. Rosters may also detail an employee's total number of hours for the period indicated.

Quality Assurance is the process of maintaining compliance with the various sections of workplace governance. Examples of a quality assurance framework include:

• Internal and external auditing.
• Applying for and maintaining accreditation/registration with an industry association.
• Training sessions and testing/assessment.
• Policy and procedure manuals.
• Employee performance reviews.

Workplaces can manage their Quality Assurance processes internally or they can work with a specialist consulting company. Some industries are more regulated than others and therefore the level of quality assurance may be more stringent and ramifications for non-compliance quite severe.

As part of your duties, you may be required to gather personal information from clients. This may include:

• Contact Information - Addresses, Phone Numbers, Email Addresses.
• Financial Information - Credit Card Numbers, Bank Details, Payment History, Credit Checks.
• Animal Profile Information - Identifying Characteristics, Registration Status.
• Animal Health Care Information - Vaccination History, Medical Procedures.

The main consideration you need to abide by in regards to record-keeping and privacy is the security of this personal information. Always ensure that you do the following:

• Keep paper-based records in locked filing cabinets/drawers.
• Use passwords for computerised programs such as databases and maintain password security.
• Proofread all outgoing correspondence, especially emails, to ensure the recipient is the correct person.

In module 2, you will learn more about workplace communications. It is important to familiarise yourself with your workplace policies and procedures for communication.

There are various types of communication that you will undertake with other staff members and clients or customers. These include:

• Face to face communication
• Written correspondence such as letters or emails
• Phone calls

It is also important to remember that just like animals, we also communicate non-verbally with our body language. Be aware of your posture and body movements when communicating.

Teamwork is also important, especially in situations where risks or hazards are present. Maintaining open communication can assist in maintaining positive and constructive teamwork.

If you see someone struggling or have completed your required tasks, lend a hand!

Each workplace will have a structure that indicates who your supervisor is, team leaders, and who you should report things to. It is important to familiarise yourself with this and ensure you are reporting to the appropriate person.

A workplace structure or line of reporting may look something like this:

1. Owner/Operator
2. Workplace supervisor
3. Team supervisor
4. Team leaders
5. All other staff

Or:

1. Veterinary Manager or Practice Manager
2. Veterinarians
3. Nursing Manager
4. Team leaders
5. Veterinary Nurses
6. Animal Attendants

As an individual with a Certificate II in Animal Care, you will be able to go into an animal care workplace in an entry or support role. In Most workplaces, your job role or title will be Animal Attendant or Kennel hand. This does not mean you are limited to these roles; however, some workplaces may require you to do additional study to move into other positions.

The types of tasks or responsibilities you may be asked to complete include but are not limited to:

• Cleaning and maintenance of animal housing
• Feeding and watering animals
• Handling and/or restraining animals for treatment or medications
• Exercising animals
• Developing and implementing enrichment strategies
• General cleaning and maintenance of the animal care facility
• Laundry
• Client interactions including the admission and discharge of animals into the facility
• Restocking including making up chemicals or solutions.

A typical day working as an animal attendant will look something like this:

At the start of your shift, you would make your presence known and confirm your responsibilities with your supervisor or manager. Once you get to know the workplace, you may understand the responsibilities that need to be completed on a day-to-day basis.

From here you should go around and check on each animal. In some cases, you may also get ‘rounds’ for the animals. This is done in most veterinary clinics. Rounds are when you get a handover with information about each animal and its needs. For example, if they are being walked and what their temperament is like. You should check each animal’s file or cage card, to ensure you have an idea of when they need to be walked, fed, or treatment is required. Each animal should have a fresh bowl of water and when required appropriate meals. While you are going around checking on each animal, you should also take note of which cages require cleaning. Once your checks and/or rounds are complete, you would need to go around and clean each cage according to your workplace procedures.

Most workplaces will have a schedule already worked out. For example, they may require that all animals be walked every 4 hours or once in the morning and once at night. Feeding may only be done in the morning unless stated otherwise or it may happen at midday and 8 pm before you leave. You will need to become familiar with your workplace policies and procedures and follow these on shift. On top of exercising animals, you may need to implement some enrichment strategies, especially for animals that are boarding.

In between cleaning the cages, exercising animals, and feeding them, you will need to keep your eye on the laundry. Multi-tasking can be a helpful skill to have. If you are walking towards the laundry, pop your head in and put a cycle on if there is a build-up of washing. You will also need to clean animal dishes, litter trays and other items used such as kidney dishes. You may also be required to clean and pack up areas after use. This may include equipment that is used. You will need to manage the waste and frequently change the bins.

At the end of your shift and throughout your shift, you should keep an eye on the level of products out onthe floor and restock anything that is getting low or becomes depleted. This will include cleaning chemicals and making them up to the correct dilution. If you are not sure, you should always ask a manager or supervisor what the dilution rate should be. Products can have different dilution rates for different levels of cleaning.

Depending on your workplace, you may also have additional tasks to complete, like grooming animals.

There is alwayssomething to be done and lots of cleaning that needs to take place in animal care facilities. If you are ever unsure or run out of things to do, check in with your manager or supervisor.

Watch the video below on the day in the life of an animal attendant at the RSPCA.

Industry work conditions can be found in the Animal Care and Veterinary Services Award 2020 as set by Fair Work.

With any job, it is important to demonstrate a good work ethic. So, what does this mean?

• Attitude
  Positive, reacting appropraitely.
• Attendance
  Reliable. Show up and be on time.
• Appearance
  Professional in the you act and look.
• Ambition
  Initiative, adding value.
• Acceptance
  Respect for other, follow rules.
• Appreciation
  Gratitude for others, selfless.
• Accountability
  Honesty, integrity.

Your appearance is extremely important, especially when interacting with clients. All employees should follow these simple rules for personal hygiene:

1. Hair should be tied back and off your face. It should be neat and tidy.
2. Makeup should be kept to a minimum.
3. A name badge may be required.
4. Shower daily and use deodorant.
5. Clothes should be neat, tidy and clean. If you are required to wear a uniform, it should be worn correctly.
6. Short and clean nails. Acrylic/fake nails and nail polish rules will differ in each workplace. For hygiene and aspectic reasons, the general rule of thumb is no.
7. Long, loose fitting pants. This is to avoid an animal scratching or biting your legs.
8. Non-slip enclosed shoes.