Work flexibility guide to boost gender diversity in mining

To coincide with International Women’s Day, a United Nations-backed event celebrated on 8 March in more than 40 countries worldwide, the Australian Women in Resources Alliance (AWRA) has launched its Guide to Flexible Work to help the typically male-dominated resource industry increase its workforce gender diversity.

The AWRA said mining, oil and gas and related construction sector employers have in fact overhauled recruitment and human resources methods in recent years to diversify the skills and talent mix of their workforces, but still face challenges putting flexible work arrangements into practice at their operations.

“Flexibility can be particularly challenging at resource industry workplaces that involve remote locations, projects operating on a 24-hour basis and often with health and safety rules restricting the practical ability to have multiple rosters or other options for flexible work,” said AWRA spokesperson Tara Diamond.

“AWRA’s Guide to Flexible Work helps resource employers think outside the box and consider the broad range of modern flexible work options that may suite their workplaces and appeal to a greater pool of employees — both female and male — to ultimately benefit organisational culture and performance.”

The guide includes advice, 13 types of flexible work options such as job sharing, teleworking, flexible hours and expanded leave, example policies and templates, legal tips and case studies.

Minister for Women Michaelia Cash said a practical guide to implementing flexible work policies will help open doors to women in the resource industry.

“I am delighted to endorse AWRA’s Guide to Flexible Work as an important practical tool to assist in the workplace flexibility practices of Australia’s resource industry employers,” said Minister Cash.

“With the jobs of the future set to be more flexible and agile, the ability for employers in male-dominated industries to implement valuable and practical options for workplace flexibility will be vital to their success in attracting and retaining more diverse workforces.

AWRA’s Guide to Flexible Work can be downloaded here.

AWRA is an industry initiative facilitated by the Australian Mines and Metals Association (AMMA).

Originally published here.