Christine Bowen
Brisbane,Australia
Summary
Dynamic leader with a proven track record across human and workplace relations, excelling in strategic project management and stakeholder engagement. Experienced at forming and leading teams, overseeing and delivering across multiple priority functions, including implementing processes, worker welfare, driving positive outcomes, and fostering a culture of collaboration and support. Also proficient at worker grievance resolution, re-engagement, and relationship management.
Overview
22
22
years of professional experience
Work History
A / Director – Worker Resolution and Reengagement Team (WRRT)
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
Brisbane, Australia
06.2025 - Current
- Starting a new team within the Delivery Branch in June 2025 and streamlining processes to successfully deliver outcomes across three high priority functions – Worker Grievances, Worker Re-engagements, and disengagement outcomes.
- Leading and operationalising the disengagement taskforce outcomes from the report which was approved by the Minister in September 2025.
- Developing a strategic project plan to implement and manage the disengagement taskforce outcomes.
- Presenting on the disengagement taskforce outcomes to key stakeholders and providing an update on the report at various stakeholder working groups including - The Industry Consultative Group (ICG), and The Strategic Consultative Group (SCG).
- Responding to and managing team outcomes in relation to ad-hoc requests for Senate Estimates including Questions on Notice.
- Participating in meetings with country Heads of Missions (HoMs) and DFAT to educate them about the PALM worker re-engagement process and implement a plan to work with each of the pacific countries to tailor worker re-engagement strategies.
Assistant Director – Worker Support, Strategy
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
Brisbane, Australia
08.2023 - 05.2025
- Operationalising the grievance management policy for the PALM Scheme.
- Managing and supporting a team of Senior Project Officers, through complex PALM worker grievance cases.
- Providing guidance to the team on the assessment of Approved Employer (AE) Worker Welfare and Wellbeing (WWB) Plans.
- Presenting at various internal and external forums on the grievance management process.
- Facilitating Early Resolution Meetings between AEs and PALM workers related to a grievance.
- Successfully finalised and implemented the Grievance Management Policy and associated procedures.
- Development of the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and guidance material to operationalise the Grievance Management Policy.
A/ Director – Worker Support, Strategy
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
Brisbane, Australia
12.2023 - 12.2023
- Responding to ad hoc requests from the First Assistant Secretary's/Minister’s Office relating to the grievance management policy going live.
- Managing and supporting a team of senior project officers through complex PALM worker grievance cases.
- Providing guidance to the team on the assessment of Approved Employer (AE) Worker Welfare and Wellbeing (WWB) Plans.
- Facilitating Early Resolution Meetings between AEs and PALM workers related to a grievance.
- Successfully producing high-level talking points on the grievance management policy for the Minister’s Office.
Engagement Manager - National Employers
Pacific Labour Facility (PLF)
Brisbane, Australia
05.2022 - 08.2023
- The Engagement Manager (EM) is the PLF's key focal point for engagement with Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme, Approved Employer's (AEs) with a national or multi-state footprint.
- Drive ongoing engagement, growth and sustainability of the PALM scheme across the country.
- Managing a team of National Relationship Manager (NRMs).
- Support the PALM scheme AEs to grow and support their workers, acting as a conduit within the PLF as well as connecting them to other stakeholders.
- Managing schemes largest AE – Regional Workforce Management (over 5000 PALM workers), HealthX, MADEC, Whales Regional Workforce, and Kilcoy Global Foods.
- Driving PLFs industry engagement, building awareness of the scheme and engaging on strategic workforce planning issues with stakeholders.
- Engaging and educating other Labour mobility stakeholders and oversees the operational procedures and complementary practices for delivery of PLFs national AE relationship management function.
- Consulted with relevant internal stakeholders and wrote a Paper which was presented to the Senior Leadership Team, about a Business Policy Brief and Process to Transition PALM workers from a Labour Hire Company to a Host after they become a Direct Approved Employer.
- Recruited and trained a team of National Relationship Managers to support the EM's - National Employers.
National Relationship Manager
Pacific Labour Facility (PLF)
Brisbane, Australia
04.2021 - 05.2022
- Managed the Pacific Labour Scheme's (PLS's) largest Approved Employer (AE) in the implementation and operation of sustainable processes and practices to assist with recruitment/reassignment planning, education and capacity building activities.
- Promoted diversity, equity, and inclusion and providing advice on recruitment pathways that are made available to AEs pre and post COVID, and managed contingency plans and worker reassignments.
- Along with the coordination of emerging employer needs and providing broader stakeholder and strategic advice, also ensuring alignment with the Deed of Agreement/AE Guidelines.
- Contributed to the development of a risk management framework to identify and best manage the program risks across host sites.
- In collaboration with other internal teams, monitored emerging and developing industry trends and opportunities.
- Offered guidance to AEs, PLF work streams and other PALM stakeholders on matters including: Offer of Employment (OoE), worker pay, hours and deduction matters, end of employment matters, and advising of the appropriate escalation of workplace related issues, and AE complaints.
- Engaged and educated other Labour mobility stakeholders including country liaison officers, and engagement with Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) on issues impacting the Pacific Labour mobility.
- Provided ongoing training and mentoring to new Relationship Managers.
- Successfully demonstrated strategic thinking with identification that the schemes largest AE - FIP Group, was not performing in accordance with the Deed of Agreement, so I monitored and managed the performance benchmarks across stakeholders, to better manage recruitment processes, outcomes, and sustainability for the ongoing recruitment of workers.
- Formulated the first draft of the Meat works Discussion Paper.
- Liaised with the Assurance team to create a detailed risk assessment for host sites that have been identified as ‘high risk' within the FIP Group business.
Workforce Relations Compliance Officer
Pacific Labour Facility (PLF)
Brisbane, Australia
11.2019 - 04.2021
- Provided policy advice and general information, and advice about workplace laws, rights and entitlements to the Scheme's AE's and their workers at various stages of the recruitment application processes and throughout participation, safeguarding the Scheme's reputation and in accordance with the Deed.
- Assisted AE's with drafting of OoE's to Pacific workers and/or reviewing context of existing contracts, ensuring these addressed Industrial Relations (IR) requirements, and minimum workplace entitlements.
- Monitored and ensured that the Scheme AE's were complying with the Australian workplace laws, and undertook compliance/audit activities, and guided AE’s through the recruitment application process.
- Formulating the first draft of the Worker ‘Deductions' fact sheet.
- Achieved positive outcomes by successfully managing the recruitment, compliance and redeployment of PLS workers throughout the ever-changing environment due to COVID affected times.
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer / Workforce Capability Assessor
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
Brisbane, Australia
11.2018 - 10.2019
- Scheduled project workshops for one of QBCC's Key Strategic Projects with a diverse range of stakeholders across the business.
- Utilised a range of task management solutions to ensure deadlines were met and tailored my communication style and approach to a broad range of stakeholders, across all levels of the business.
- End to end recruitment for various roles across the regions, along with in-house Brisbane roles.
- Undertook Organisational Development activities that included job design, evaluation and role description preparation and establishment variations.
- Successfully changed the way QBCC recruited for Building Inspectors by adopting an effective recruitment strategy promoting diversity, equity and inclusion to drive innovation, creativity and good practice. This was done through implementing a campaign that increased the pool of potential quality applicants from 9 to 36.
- Researched, drafted and updated over 400 position descriptions across QBCC and gradually aligned the key attributes for each one with the Queensland Public Service, Capability and Leadership Framework (CLF).
- Facilitated Workforce Capability Workshops and led the JEMS evaluation process with staff across QBCC.
Principal Human Resources Officer
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
Brisbane, Australia
08.2018 - 10.2018
- (Acted in this role to cover a team member's annual leave).
- Provided high level support to managers and staff to support the effective and consistent delivery of case management and preparing high quality reports to senior management on complex and sensitive case management issues.
- Investigated staff conduct and performance matters, report and recommend accordingly.
- Managed the caseload of graduated return to work employees - QSuper and WorkCover.
- Undertook Organisational Development activities including job design, JEMs evaluation and role description preparation.
- Conducted end to end recruitment for various roles across the regions - as a panel member and writing up the selection reports.
- Created new positions in Aurion including establishment variations and coordinated workforce management reporting to meet monthly and annual reporting requirements.
- Implemented the new ‘front-line' staff definition into the monthly workforce management report and the QBCC annual report by recalculating the data to accurately reflect the percentage of active FTE staff that are front-line only.
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer / Workforce Capability Assessor
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
, Australia
01.2018 - 08.2018
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer / Rehabilitation Coordinator
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
, Australia
07.2015 - 01.2018
Customer Service Officer
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
Brisbane, Australia
06.2014 - 07.2015
Customer Service Officer
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
Mackay, Australia
06.2013 - 06.2014
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer
Mackay Sugar Limited
Mackay, Australia
08.2011 - 05.2013
Recruitment Specialist & Customer Service Roles
Virgin Blue, The Recruit, And M&T Resources
Brisbane, Australia
01.2004 - 01.2009
Education
PALM Disability Inclusion Pathway Training -
PLF
Brisbane, QLD12.2022
Recruiting and Selecting Staff Refresher -
QBCC
Brisbane, QLD04.2019
Emotional Intelligence Workshop -
QBCC
Brisbane, QLD09.2018
Job Evaluation & Job Analysis (JEMS) Course -
MERCER
Brisbane, QLD10.2017
Rehabilitation & Return to Work Coordinator Course -
The National Safety Council of Australia
Brisbane, QLD10.2015
Bachelor of Business - HR Management & Marketing
Queensland University of Technology
Brisbane, QLD11.2003
Skills
- Strategic leadership and vision
- People, leadership, and development
- Influence and stakeholder engagement
- Relationship management
- Problem solving
- Effective communication
References
References available upon request.
Timeline
A / Director – Worker Resolution and Reengagement Team (WRRT)
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
06.2025 - Current
A/ Director – Worker Support, Strategy
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
12.2023 - 12.2023
Assistant Director – Worker Support, Strategy
Department of Employment and Workplace Relations
08.2023 - 05.2025
Engagement Manager - National Employers
Pacific Labour Facility (PLF)
05.2022 - 08.2023
National Relationship Manager
Pacific Labour Facility (PLF)
04.2021 - 05.2022
Workforce Relations Compliance Officer
Pacific Labour Facility (PLF)
11.2019 - 04.2021
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer / Workforce Capability Assessor
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
11.2018 - 10.2019
Principal Human Resources Officer
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
08.2018 - 10.2018
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer / Workforce Capability Assessor
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
01.2018 - 08.2018
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer / Rehabilitation Coordinator
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
07.2015 - 01.2018
Customer Service Officer
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
06.2014 - 07.2015
Customer Service Officer
Queensland Building and Construction Commission
06.2013 - 06.2014
Human Resources and Recruitment Officer
Mackay Sugar Limited
08.2011 - 05.2013
Recruitment Specialist & Customer Service Roles
Virgin Blue, The Recruit, And M&T Resources
01.2004 - 01.2009
PALM Disability Inclusion Pathway Training -
PLF
Recruiting and Selecting Staff Refresher -
QBCC
Emotional Intelligence Workshop -
QBCC
Job Evaluation & Job Analysis (JEMS) Course -
MERCER
Rehabilitation & Return to Work Coordinator Course -
The National Safety Council of Australia
Bachelor of Business - HR Management & Marketing
Queensland University of Technology