Month: May 2013

#Diversity and #Inclusion – and meddling bureaucrats

AustralianActuary Business

It is a requirement of Australian law that all employers that employ more than 100 employees must report to a Government department the breakdown of the employees by various characteristics such as gender, race, age and so on. ‘What for?’, I hear you ask. And that is a good question, one with no good answer that I can find.

I do not expect that anyone would seriously argue against diversity and inclusion in the workplace. The opposite would be homogeneity and exclusion and no business leader would nominate that as a way to improve the share price.

Diversity of people, ideas, motivations and personalities is good for group effectiveness. Inclusion of all people, rather than exclusion, means getting the best out of them. It is a no-brainer. So I do not think we have a problem. Continue reading →

Uncommon causes of death – modern day problems

AustralianActuary Life

Reading studies into the causes of death is possibly a morbid habit but it does have a kind of fascination. If you read about causes of death today in wealthy countries, you will find that accidents and suicides take most of the under 40 year old deaths but then cancers and other neoplasms become more common the higher up the mortality table one advances.

It was not always so. In the year 1665, according to a summary of parish records in London, the most frequent cause of death was the plague. Continue reading →