EDUCATION

Sickies, low productivity, workflow interruptions … the indirect costs of poor employee health are many and varied, and it’s the employer that cops it.

Next month lunch rooms across Australia will come alive as workers delight in sharing the foods from their cultural background with their colleagues as part of a national campaign promoting diversity.

Five years on from the official introduction of workplace reconciliation action plans (RAPs), more than 280 organisations have signed on and several of the nation's high-profile CEOs say it's changed the way their companies do business.

With more staff cuts being announced every day around the country as organisations act to stem costs in the face of economic uncertainty, a leading workplace relations lawyer has warned employers to be careful when letting staff go.

Some indiscriminate virus must have been around on 27 January: figures from an independent survey showed 170,000 more people than average called in sick on the work day which followed the Australia Day public holiday. Poor things.

Human Capital: As MD of FedEx Express Australasia, what do you expect from your HR team? What skills and traits do you value highly in that team?

NMB has witnessed a spike in SMSF lending interest, though managing director Gerald Foley said brokers need to understand the complexity of these products.

Employer demand for international graduates in 2011 increased to levels not seen since before the Global Financial Crisis in 2008, according to a new report.

Research by Gallup has demonstrated that organisations with high levels of engagement routinely outperform their competitors; they are 27% more profitable, they have 38% above average productivity and have 50% higher customer loyalty.

More than three quarters of prospective employees are turned off a job/employer by a long recruitment process, according to a recent survey.

An estimated 2000 primary school children received suspension as a disciplinary action against serious offenses in 2011, and 75 of them were formally expelled. In many cases the disciplinary action was a last resort by desperate principals - not designed to teach the child a lesson but to get help for them or protect other students following violent, antisocial and occasionally sexually motivated behaviour.

Parents are shying away from confronting their children and leaving all the disciplinary plans to teachers, a survey in Victoria has indicated.

She is one of Hollywood’s youngest rising stars but the 14-year old Chloe Moretz has got her mind set on bigger things of which includes her education.

On a typical day in school, Kush Bhattacharya, 4, can disappear from his mathematics class to enjoy running on the grass barefooted. He hides from friends in a cow dung-made cave and goes back to reciting nursery rhymes in a read bus, which seems doubling up a classroom.

Education authorities are considering random drug testing involving the police to address the drug issues, such as taking or dealing drugs, which have caused the suspension of over 100 students in Waikato schools in 2011.

Adriana Kemp, 14, is in a hospital for spinal injuries which were a result of bullies' beating at Flaxmere College, New Zealand's TV3 reported. Adriana was forced to the ground as two fellow pupils repeatedly punched her on a grassy field at school. The attack was filmed and uploaded to YouTube, according to the report.

Suicide reports from schools during VCE exams in November shocked Victorian Education Minister Martin Dixon, who, after receiving the reports, ordered an investigation on student suicides and teen mental health issues in the state.

The Australian government is providing $5 million in cash grants for poor families in the Philippines to help them continue sending children to school.

A group advocating sex education is drawing attention to the sexual lifestyle of young Australians and the youth’s awareness of safe sex practices, warning that ignorance could make the young Aussies vulnerable to HIV/AIDS.

One Australian woman was among seven passengers killed in a train fire in India on Tuesday. Three other Australian passengers were injured in the accident that occured 2 a.m. local time in Jharkhand state.

An estimated amount of $300 million is needed to repair Victoria's state schools before it becomes utterly worthless in decayed state, Herald Sun reported.

Some 27 percent of New Zealand’s teenage population could be dreaming of how to leave the country eventually, according to a survey released by the Ministry of Education Wednesday.

The recent Amber Video search frenzy proves three things on the cyberspace today: one, people cannot resist jumping on the curious bandwagon; two, anyone hungry enough for attention - for whatever purpose -- has a place on the internet; and three, internet users have a long way to go before grasping the concept of responsible sharing of information.

Taking a leap of faith to apply for an internship in the Big Apple proved fruitful for this young writer.

A French teacher has died of injuries from third degree burns after setting herself on fire in front of frightened students. The 44-year-old teacher, who had worked at Jean Moulin school for 10 years, was depressed over her relations with her students in her math classes.

Versions of the "Occupy Wall Street" protest in New York were staged in France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, the Philippines, Spain, Switzerland and Taiwan over the weekend with similar protesters in Sydney and Melbourne demonstrating in Martin Place and City Square.

Mental health as a subject in high school in Australia can make a difference in the lives of teenagers.

The Apple logo with the silhouette of the company's co-founder Steve Jobs replacing the bite may not be an original design after it matched with another designed by a Briton.

YouTube, in cooperation with computer maker Lenovo, Google, NASA and ESA, has launched Space Lab, a global competition for students around the world who will work on a science experiment design with the International Space Station in mind.