Increasing diversity in the workplace isn’t just the right thing to do – it’s good for business.
Anarra Hume, Aboriginal on her father’s side from the Yorta Yorta tribe, successfully completed her Business Traineeship with the West Gate Tunnel Project.
Can you imagine a world where everyone was the same, and had the same ideas? Workplace diversity is key to a great company culture and a business that outperforms its peers.
Engagement and retention:
According the World Economic Forum “By the year 2025, 75% of the global workforce will be made up of millennials - which means this group will occupy the majority of leadership roles over the coming decade.” Additionally, the 2018 Deloitte Millennial Survey shows that “74% of these individuals believe their organisation is more innovative when it has a culture of inclusion, and 83% of millennials are actively engaged when they believe their employer fosters an inclusive culture.”
Closing the gender pay gap:
There are many reasons young people choose to pursue a trade as a career after school. To name a few, students can earn while learning rather than putting themselves into debt trying to achieve their career goals. They also directly enter an in-demand occupation, with the ability to earn a high income, potentially own their own business, or work flexible hours. Unfortunately, the playing field is not level for women in the workforce, and they are over-represented in low paying occupations and industries. According to the Workplace Gender Quality Agency, the current gender pay gap in Australia is currently 13.9%. A 2015 McKinsey Global Institute report estimated that “closing the gender gap would add $28 trillion to the value of the global economy by 2025 – a 26% increase.” Increasing female participation in traditional trades is just one way we can help close the gender pay gap, leading women into high-paying and in-demand occupations.
Disability Employment:
According to the Australian Network on Disability, “more than four million Australians, that’s one in five people, experience disability”. This means when our talent attraction and retention programs are not inclusive to people with a disability, companies are potentially missing out on the top candidate for the role when 20% of potential candidates are not even considered. The Australian Network on Disability also noted that “numerous studies have shown employees and customers are more loyal to organisations that demonstrate they value diversity and inclusion and that their workforce reflects the community as a whole” and that “research on workers with disability show they often have lower absenteeism and employee turnover and low incidence of workplace injury, which all help to create cost effective businesses.” Inclusiveness can save businesses real money.
Employment of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples
Research by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare in 2016 showed “Indigenous Australians aged 15–64 were 1.9 times as likely to be not employed as non-Indigenous Australians.” Increasing employment outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is critical in bridging the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians. Additionally, by employing Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander people, businesses will gain an insight into the Indigenous community, increasing cross-cultural awareness, allowing all employees to gain skills in interacting with people from different cultural backgrounds.
How NextGen Jobs Can Help
Building an inclusive, diverse workforce benefits everyone – your employees, your organisation and your community as a whole. NextGen Jobs are very proud of our above industry average employment rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples (13%), Women in Non-Traditional Trades (17%) and people with a disability (7%). We have achieved this by building strong relationships within the community, and partnering with organisations that share our vision for a fair and equitable Australia for all.
Traineeships and apprenticeships truly have the power to change young people’s lives. Just ask Chloe McDonald, a young Gunditjmara woman who grew up in Nathalia. Her Certificate III in Business traineeship at the Victorian Government’s Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) “has given me more than anybody could ever imagine”. She now works directly with DELWP in the Victorian Public Service (VPS), and was selected to be part of the inaugural Barring Djinang Vocational Education and Training Graduate Program.
If you could you like to discuss how NextGen Jobs can assist with increasing diversity in your organisation and set up the Australian youth for a successful career, we would to love hear from you!
Written by Louise Bastow
