Dealing with uncommunicative boss

DO you have a boss that doesn't communicate with you - doesn't provide the information you need to do your job, doesn't listen and appears unable to help progress your career.

YES? Well, what can you do?

First, ask for what you need, and also think of alternative ways to proceed if the boss doesn't come through.Not all people with manager titles are good at managing people. Organisations often promote people with strong technical skills but do not teach them how to lead.This leaves the worker having to take the lead, to push for the support they need.And, that may, or may not, be successful.If this applies to your workplace, then, to start, reflect on the situation, focus on your breath to help you let go of disappointment so that you can look objectively at the factors at play.What is your vision for your relationship with your manager? How often would you interact and what would those interactions include? People have a variety of levels of need. They are not right or wrong, but be sure that you are clear on what you'd like. Think in terms of day-to-day direction as well as higher-level career development aspects. If you're having trouble imagining this, think back on experiences with past managers, good or bad, to define your ideal.Now, consider your current manager, and detail your concerns. What behaviours cause you to feel unheard? For example, do you hear keyboard clicks if you're on the phone or does he fiddle with his smartphone during meetings? Or is it subtler than that?If you want the situation to improve, you'll need to discuss this with your manager. Preparation will be key, and you probably don't want to spring it on him without warning. For example, consider setting up a meeting to touch base on your new working relationship.In planning for the meeting, develop one or two key messages that you want to convey. If there are positive aspects, be ready to mention those. If there are specific behaviours that you find challenging, highlight those, using "I" messages: "When I hear you typing when we talk, I feel disappointed because it seems like you're not really paying attention to our conversation."There may also be needs you can bring up; for example, "I'd like to set up some structured career-development discussion time" so that he knows it's important to you.These conversations may not yield the results you hope for, so develop a Plan B. It's always a good idea to have mentors, so look around your organisation or broader network to identify people who could provide extra support.If, after all your efforts, the relationship is unsustainable, consider other, more extreme, options. You could talk to your boss' boss for ideas on making it work. Or you could look for a new job, recognising that you may not actually end up with a better outcome.

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Vic drug dealers stripped of all assets

SERIOUS drug offenders face losing almost everything they own as well as copping a hefty jail term in Victoria.

PEOPLE convicted of trafficking or cultivating large volumes of drugs will be stripped of all assets save for basic household goods, tools and a modestly priced car under new forfeiture laws.

The changes come on top of an increase in the average jail term offenders face, which will be lifted to 14 years under sentencing legislation also before parliament.Premier Denis Napthine says drug dealers peddle death and misery and need to be hit hard."Large-scale drug offenders will do significant jail time and they will forfeit almost everything they own," Dr Napthine said.The changes, which will come before parliament this week, mean there will be no need to prove the offender's property came from the proceeds of crime."This will send a very strong message to criminals in Victoria," he said.The laws will apply to offenders' assets whether they are lawfully obtained or not.Offenders will not be able to sell off their assets.Once they are charged, orders restricting the sale of their property will be put in place until the outcome of their trial, or the charges are dropped."Not only will they go to jail, they will lose almost everything they own," Attorney-General Robert Clark said."Any financial gain drug traffickers may have stood to gain will be wiped out."Mr Clark says the new laws will also give police greater ability to disrupt gangs.Police will be given stronger powers to ban criminal bikie gangs, restrict their activities and strip members of their firearms.The laws will also stop gang members escaping the law by quitting one gang and joining another.Families of drug dealers will be able to apply for limited funding to seek accommodation, Mr Clark said.Basic household items like clothing will not be included.Labor says it is looking carefully at the legislation.

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Jobs could go, Qld health minister says

Queensland's health minister concedes jobs could be lost as local health boards take over staffing. Source: AAP

QUEENSLAND'S health minister has conceded jobs could be lost as local health boards gain control of staffing from a centralised bureaucracy.

FROM July 1, eight of the state's 16 regional Hospital and Health Services (HHS) boards will take control of staffing from Queensland Health.

The other eight HHS boards will gain staffing control in July 2015.Health Minister Lawrence Springborg said the transfer of staffing power from Queensland Health to local health and hospital boards could lead to job losses in the department."That's the simple reality. I think everyone understands those sorts of things," he told ABC Radio on Monday."As you put more of the focus into efficient management at a local level, there's ultimately going to be transfer of some of those resources as well, and positions may not ultimately be needed."The government established the HHS boards in July 2012 in a bid to decentralise the health bureaucracy.From July, three HHS boards take ownership of land and buildings.Another six boards will own these assets in December, with the remaining seven HHS boards taking control of infrastructure from July 2015.Opposition health spokeswoman Jo-Ann Miller said Mr Springborg was shirking his portfolio responsibilities by offloading them to health boards."Make no mistake, the Newman government is trying to dodge responsibility for cuts to the health service, responsibility for its management and the possible future sale of assets," she said."We see a health minister who is running scared from the health portfolio and becoming the minister for buck passing."The state's public sector union estimates thousands more jobs could go in health."All that will change is how the government defines the jobs it cuts - not that jobs will be cut," Together Union secretary Alex Scott said."They cut jobs in health and then redefine them to say they weren't frontline services."

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Jodhi Meares charged with DUI

Jodhi Meares is heading to court after allegedly being caught drink driving in Sydney's east. Source: AAP

JAMES Packer's ex-wife Jodhi Meares will face court in August on drink driving charges after crashing into three parked cars in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

THE 43-year-old had to be rescued from her Range Rover, which rolled after the smash in upmarket Bellevue Hill on Saturday night.

The fashion designer, who is engaged to rocker Jon Stevens, was given a roadside breath test before being taken to the local police station.Police say she recorded a 0.181 blood alcohol reading, almost four times the legal limit.She was charged with drink driving and driving while suspended and is due to appear at Waverley Local Court on August 5.It's reported Meares could face the possibility of 18 months in jail and a fine of $3300.After a long engagement, Meares and Stevens were reportedly planning to tie the knot in September.

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NSW teenager survives 80m cliff fall

A TEENAGER'S survival from an 80-metre cliff plunge in NSW's Hunter Valley is "mind-boggling".

THE 17-year-old and a group of friends were trying to get into a dance party in Watagan State Forest, 20 kilometres west of Lake Macquarie, on Saturday night when he fell down the sheer rock face about 10.30pm on Saturday.

Emergency services and local volunteers abseiled down the cliff about 4am and spent the rest of the night with the injured teenager.He was winched to safety about 10.30am and flown to Newcastle's John Hunter Hospital with broken bones and suspected internal injuries and is in a serious but stable condition."I don't know how he has survived, and the doctors and the paramedics are saying the same thing," said a spokesman for the Westpac Rescue Helicopter.Acting Superintendent Murray Lundberg said the teenager's survival was "mind boggling"."I haven't got words to describe his fortunate luck," he said.He said the teenager and his mates were camping in the forest when they came across the dance party and were denied entry.The youth apparently thought he could get into the function from around the back, through the bush, with no lights and no knowledge of the terrain, "and he's just fallen off the side of a cliff".A number of trees had to be chopped down before the teen could be winched aboard the helicopter.It's understood the boy was trying to get into Solstium Shadows - A Winter Solstice Bush Gathering.The two-day rave was being held at a site off Rope Road, in the heart of the forest.

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Qld ministers meeting in Palmer's seat

QUEENSLAND cabinet ministers are meeting in Clive Palmer's Sunshine Coast electorate only days after the mining magnate confirmed he would be suing the deputy premier.

MINISTERS and department heads are holding a community forum, with approved participants, at Maroochydore on Sunday afternoon followed by a cabinet meeting in the same beachside suburb on Monday, at the Mike Ahern Centre.

Maroochydore is within Mr Palmer's federal electorate of Fairfax.The cabinet meeting would also be held just three days after Mr Palmer lodged a defamation writ against Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney in the Supreme Court.Mr Palmer is suing Mr Seeney for defamation over an ABC television interview where he alleged the mining tycoon sought special favours for his Waratah Coal interests in the Galilee Basin in 2012.The federal MP is also suing Premier Campbell Newman for defamation after the premier claimed that he tried to "buy" the Queensland government.A spokesman for Mr Newman denied there was any symbolism with a community cabinet being held in Mr Palmer's seat."No symbolism there," he told AAP, adding community cabinets had been held across regional Queensland in Bowen, Cooktown and Townsville."Don't read too much into it."Opposition Leader Annastacia Palaszczuk said the premier had not held a media conference during the past week, which included the governor's approval of controversial chief justice pick Tim Carmody."The premier has been in hiding now for over a week, afraid to front the music, afraid to talk to people in this state," she told reporters in Brisbane on Sunday.The premier held his first news conference in five days on Sunday on the Sunshine Coast.He hadn't faced reporters since a Mount Isa event on Tuesday.

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