Major capital projects

The University defines major capital projects as those costing more than $5 million. During 2018 the University spent $29 million on major capital projects. Total capital expenditure in 2018 was $71.2 million.

The University places student experience at the heart of its teaching and research mission, and will continue to invest in the modernisation of the campus to achieve this aim.

Completed projects

Forrest Hall student accommodation was completed in February 2018. The $30 million building on the bank of the Swan River offers contemporary accommodation to world-leading PhD students coming to study and live in Western Australia.

Projects in progress

Works commenced in April 2018 on the construction of the main build as part of the $80 million transformational EZONE UWA Student Hub project, which will become Western Australia’s premier engineering learning facility when complete.

Development approval of the $16.5 million Indigenous Studies building was given in 2018. The precinct includes the expansion of Prescott Court towards Hackett Drive, enhancing internal and external space integration. The building will be completed in 2020.

The second stage of Forrest Hall, comprising short-stay accommodation and office space, achieved development approval in November 2018. Stage 2 has been designed to keep within the style of the existing Forrest Hall building, and is expected to be completed by early 2021.

Planning is under way to increase the capacity of the mechanical system at the Perth campus to support cooling requirements. The University has allocated $12 million to this project, which will be completed in 2021.

Major projects in progress at 31 December 2018

Our people and culture

The people priorities for 2018 focused on the continued development of the People and Culture Strategy. This included the introduction of some of the foundational aspects of this strategy in areas such as recruitment, organisational development, reward and employee relations. Through our Be Inspired campaign, we attracted internationally renowned academics to support us on our mission to become a top 50 university by 2050. We refreshed our approach to performance development along with a remuneration structure for established professors that recognises and values high-quality achievement both fairly and consistently. The Academic Promotions Committee reviewed its terms of reference and the support provided to academics to facilitate greater opportunities for career progression.

Finally, we began the implementation of the terms and conditions from the new enterprise agreements, which led to significant improvements to existing policies, processes and practices. Taken together, the actions we implemented throughout 2018 ensured our people practices are aligned to the 2030 strategic vision as we move into 2019.

In line with UWA2030 outcomes, our focus in 2019 will be finalising our formal People and Culture Strategy that will be based on improving workforce planning and development, underpinned by progressive people practices. These practices aim to enable an engaged and highperforming culture that is responsive to the evolving needs of the University and its stakeholders.

Inclusion and diversity

UWA has a long-standing and unwavering commitment to inclusion and diversity which is coordinated by the Inclusion and Diversity Committee (IDC), chaired by the Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor. Working groups for particular reference groups ensure there is a continued focus on creating an inclusive environment, particularly across gender, culture and language diversity, disability, LGBTIQA+ and student equity.

UWA continues to maintain its stellar performance in LGBTIQA+ inclusion, achieving Platinum Status as the only university to be ranked as a top 10 employer in the Australian Workplace Equality Index (AWEI) since the inception of the awards in 2011. As part of this achievement, we have developed a project entitled Project Peacock, a series of online self-paced modules designed to help staff learn how to support and improve the LGBTIQA+ student experience, which will be available in 2019.

Inclusion and diversity is an integral part of our culture and values, and we are committed to ensuring it is embedded across every facet of the institution.

Employee relations

This year, Human Resources focused on implementing the terms and conditions from the new enterprise agreements. This included significant improvements to existing policies, processes and practices to better align with UWA’s values and culture.

In 2019, we will focus on refining the support we provide to managers and employees such that they are enabled to better align the University’s considerable capabilities with its strategic intent.

Work, health and safety

Executive commitment to occupational safety, health and injury management

UWA is committed to providing a safe and healthy working and learning environment for its staff, students, visitors and contractors, and takes a proactive approach to minimising the potential for injury, illness and harm. This commitment is articulated in the University Policy on Work Health and Safety, and supported by a range of health and safety procedures, guidelines and protocols that meet legislative obligations.

All UWA staff are required to complete a health and safety induction every three years. Executive and senior staff are required to complete due diligence training which is designed to provide officers with information on their proactive duty of ‘due diligence' and how to exercise this duty at UWA. UWA managers and supervisors are required to complete a work, health and safety for managers and supervisors course. This course provides instruction on their roles and responsibilities with respect to Work Health and Safety (WHS), injury management and workers' compensation.

Mechanism for consultation with employees on occupational health and safety and injury management matters

UWA's Health and Safety Consultative Committee structure comprises the following groups:

• University Health and Safety Committee that consists of health and safety representatives and management representatives.
• Specialist sub-committees for high-risk activities – Radiation Safety Committee, Biosafety Committee, and Diving and Boating Safety Committee.
• Faculty/School/Divisional Health and Safety Committees.

There is a network of trained Health and Safety Representatives that support this framework and provide consultation on safety matters.

Workers' compensation and injury management

UWA continues to provide a dedicated service to assist staff returning to work following injuries or illness through its Injury Management and Wellbeing team. This team provides best practice injury management services for both compensable and non-compensable conditions, along with proactive and targeted wellbeing initiatives.

This ensures the University continues to meet its obligations articulated in both the University Policy on Injury Management, and under the Workers' Compensation and Injury Management Act 1981. This proactive approach enables area-specific injury prevention projects across UWA to target positive health and safety outcomes.