Professionals Australia (Local Government Engineers’ Association) has named Tweed Shire Council as the LGEA Employer of Choice for 2021.
Council’s General Manager Troy Green and Human Resources Manager Suzanne Richmond were presented with the award in Sydney on Friday.
“To receive such a prestigious honour from the union is a wonderful achievement and a credit to all the dedicated staff at Council,” Mr Green said.
“Winning the award is a great way to end what has been a very trying year for everyone in the Tweed border community.
“It really does cement our position as a NSW employer of choice – people choose to work at Council over other employers and it’s due to our employment terms, our great workplace culture and, of course, our wonderful location.”
Mr Green said the relationship between Council and Professionals Australia (LGEA) was an important one.
“We have established mutual trust and respect in resolving issues, while always supporting and encouraging our staff,” he said.
“We see the LGEA and its members as an integral part of our Council team.”
Now in its seventh year, the LGEA Employer of Choice Award seeks to highlight good employment practices within NSW local government, particularly those that help build engineering capacity within the industry by attracting and retaining engineers and other technical professionals within councils.
At the outbreak of COVID-19, Tweed Shire Council helped instigate a splinter award, offering more equitable support payments for all employees in NSW councils and has worked tirelessly to support the health and wellbeing of Council staff during these difficult times.
When the Queensland border closed earlier this year, Council worked with the City of Gold Coast to provide viable work for 53 staff across both councils who lived on one side of the border, and couldn’t cross for work or work from home.
Mr Green said these were just some of the reasons why Council received the Professionals Australia award.
“We are known for our dedication to attracting, developing and retaining the best staff including the best engineers, and for providing all of our staff with structured career paths involving a first-class professional development program,” he said.
“We consider our engineers and related technical professions as the backbone of Council. Maintaining and expanding infrastructure in the Tweed is key to Council’s existence. Investing in our engineering staff is an investment in the engineering capacity of the Tweed and the Northern Rivers region.”
