THE QUICK READ
• Reward and recognition programs that
require instructors to vote for their
colleagues can pose some challenges
for casual ‘sessional’ instructors who
teach at multiple facilities and have
limited interaction with other
instructors
• Making the effort to attend meetings
and social events, and make use of
face-to-face upskilling opportunities,
will foster relationships with fellow
instructors
• Talking to participants can provide
insights into cases of praiseworthy
behaviour on the part of fellow
instructors
• The act of covering classes, though
often contractually expected, is an
action that may be considered vote-
worthy, as is simply going about daily
activities with a positive attitude.
are attending regularly, they will see and hear
more about our fellow staff members than
we do, so make use of their observations.
There have been numerous occasions
when my class participants have passed on
feedback to me about fellow staff members,
for whom I have subsequently cast a vote
in R&R programs. When we consider the
amount of negative feedback that gets
relayed to us, hearing something positive
can make somebody’s day.
Covers – contract or favour?
While it may be in an instructor’s contract
requirements to cover classes, for which
they will of course be paid, I like to consider
where I would be if they had not agreed to
cover for me. Would I be able to enjoy my
time off as much if they had not agreed
to cover for me and my class had been
cancelled or the format changed? I also
consider that there are centres and classes
that I’ve decided not to cover at again, often
due to the way I was treated as a cover
instructor in those places. Hence, as well as
being simply good manners, if I want people
to agree to cover for me, then it only makes
sense that I treat them well.
Encourage doing the right thing
If you notice a fellow staff member being
helpful or friendly to you or the patrons, or
even reporting or sorting out OHS issues,
then consider a vote for that contribution.
Attention is often given to extremes of
behaviour, both poor and excellent, rather
than to those who are simply getting on with
the job with a positive attitude. Sometimes a shout out for doing the
job right can have a profound effect.
Challenge 3: Casting your vote
It’s one thing to know who you want to vote for, but quite another to
actually get your vote in. From boxes in staffrooms to online surveys
with access restrictions, it is easy for our best intentions to go by the
wayside as we juggle the countless other demands of our lives and
our instructor roles. However, there are ways to get around these
challenges:
Keep a log
For facilities at which R&R voting is done via an online survey that
only opens at certain times of the month, I keep a log of positive
things I have seen, heard and experienced. This keeps the who, what
and when fresh in my mind for when voting opens.
Take some forms home
Where R&R voting is done on paper forms, I keep a few of them on
me. That way, when I see something but have to dash from that centre
to another, then I can still jot it down and put it into the receptacle the
next time I’m back at that centre. It also enables me to jot it down if
someone does something noteworthy when I’m not physically at the
centre, such as agreeing to a last-minute class cover via a Facebook
page. While I could jot it down in my diary and then fill in a form the
next time I’m at the centre, I rarely linger in staffrooms: if I arrive early,
I prefer to spend that time building rapport with participants.
Team leader discussions
If the R&R program still isn’t working for you – and it matters to you
– then it might be worth engaging the management in a discussion.
Those in the leadership team will usually have had a different
experience of the R&R program to their instructors and may need
convincing that a dialogue is necessary. In such cases, if the centre
has a stated ethos of valuing and listening to its staff then ask them
to uphold that commitment.
If we all commit to fair, open and objective conversations between
employers and sessional employees, the purpose of R&R programs
can be fully realised.
Mel Morony
Mel is a group fitness instructor based in Eastern
Melbourne. She is passionate about raising standards in
the area of group fitness, for both participants and
instructors.
NETWORK SUMMER 2019 | 45