Lamb supplies to dry up

LIVESTOCK analysts say drought-diminished lamb production is likely to drop even further as farmers do what they can to regrow their flocks and tap into high prices for wool, lamb and mutton.

Australia’s lamb meat production dropped more than 10 per cent between November 2017 and November 2018, according to data released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, with numbers tightening after mass destocking amid an ongoing east coast drought.

Mecardo analyst Robert Herrmann said we could see even less lamb coming to market as farmers strive to rebuild.

“We’ve been sending them all to market because of drought, but when seasonal conditions come good, farmers are most likely going to do what they can to regrow their flocks,” he said.

“Prices as they are, they will be desperately trying to hold onto their sheep … and maybe push prices higher.”

November’s livestock slaughter and meat figures show cattle and pig production was also down for the month, with veal slightly higher.

DID you know that only 16 per cent of adults with autism are in full-time paid employment? Unfortunately this situation is not improving. Often when people with autism get a job, they face bullying, discrimination and isolation in the workplace.

I know the harsh reality from personal experience.

Who better to research and write about productivity and employment outcomes than someone who has experienced autism and 40 years of competitive employment?

Autism is a lifelong phenomenon. It’s in the genes and it doesn’t go away.

I agree with autism researchers who want to move beyond studying autism as a deficit and instead emphasise the abilities and strengths of people with it.

Part of the economic rationale for funding Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) is based on the scheme leading to productivity gains by increasing people’s independence and participation in the workforce.

The whole scheme will be compromised if we fail to promote better productivity and employment outcomes for people with autism, who make up 29 per cent of participants in the scheme with approved plans.

Research by the Gallup organisation shows people who use their strengths every day are 8 per cent more productive and 15 per cent less likely to quit their jobs, six times more likely to be engaged at work, and are three times more likely to report an excellent quality of life.

Performance reviews that emphasise personal strengths improve organisational performance.

Singling out people with autism by focusing on their deficits alone does not make sense.

My academic method is auto-ethnographic – involving deep reflection on my personal experiences over a lifetime of living with autism and connecting this experience to wider cultural, political and social understanding.

Three key insights for enhancing employment outcomes have emerged.

First, enable strengths. Build on employee knowledge, skills and willingness to engage meaningfully and productively at work.

For example, providing a predictable structure and routine and the chance to contribute and plan for change enabled my strengths as a sales consultant to benefit the organisation.

Second, treat every individual as an asset to grow and retain. This idea builds on the theory of knowledgeworker productivity proposed by Peter Drucker, the father of modern management.

An employer can define a worker’s job tasks but should allow the “knowledge worker” to work out how to do a task most efficiently.

WE CAN CHANGE THE SIGNIFICANT SOCIAL AND EMPLOYMENT DISADVANTAGE EXPERIENCED BY PEOPLE WITH AUTISM BY SEEING THEIR ASSETS RATHER THAN THEIR LIABILITIES.

Third, be aware of and avoid autism triggers. These triggers, however trivial they may seem to others, can set off acute stress reactions.

Triggers include unexpected and unexplained changes to routines and expectations, interactions involving implied but ironic criticism, casual off-the-cuff negative feedback, and visual or auditory distraction during periods of stress.

The hallmark of an enlightened society should be its level of inclusion.

We can change the significant social and employment disadvantage experienced by people with autism by seeing their assets rather than their liabilities.

By rethinking management attitudes and practices, workplaces can harness as strengths and advantages the attributes that usually disadvantage people with autism.