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November 26, 2008
Diversity pays says Alcoa
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Flexible work arrangements and workplace diversity are key to business sustainability, according to Alcoa of Australia’s Executive Director of Human Resources.
The comments follow new research released today by the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency (EOWA) and Alcoa, which shows an increasing number of organisations are providing flexible work arrangements.
The data, in the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency’s Survey on Workplace Flexibility, were collected through telephone conversations with over 2000 organisations between May and September 2007. As an EOWA recognised ‘Employer of Choice for Women’, and as part of the company’s commitment to promoting equal opportunity and more diverse workplace, Alcoa funded the EOWA research.
Executive Director of Human Resources, Kim Horne, said flexibility and diversity make good business sense.
“By taking the issue of diversity and work/ life balance seriously, we know we stand a far greater chance of attracting the right people who will be the best fit for our organisation and who are best placed to assist in delivering bottom line results.
“For these reasons, encouraging diversity and providing opportunities for women to realise their career potential have been central strategies for Alcoa for many years,†Mr Horne said.
The survey also revealed 48.9% of surveyed organisations now provide paid maternity or primary carer’s leave – up from 23.7% in 2001, when the first EOWA survey was conducted. Of the organisations which provided paid maternity leave, 5-6 weeks paid leave was most common.
“We have very low staff turnover rates at Alcoa and I think this has a lot to do with our flexible work arrangements and entitlements which include 13 weeks paid maternity leave and 1 week paid paternity leave,†Mr Horne said.
Alcoa’s return to work rates following maternity leave remain high at around 90 per cent and data suggests that the organisation’s ability to offer part-time work for women returning from maternity leave has had a significant impact on the retention of women.
Alcoa has also come out in support of the recent proposal for a Government funded paid parental leave scheme in Australia as an important step towards equal economic opportunity and work/ life blend for both women and men.
“We recognise that getting that blend right is not only important for our business by helping to attract and keep our employees committed to working with us, but also critical to sustainable national productivity growth and wellbeing in Australian communities,†Mr Horne said.
“Alcoa will certainly be engaged in the public discussion around a Government funded paid parental leave scheme as the Government and all businesses work together to make it a reality.â€
While the survey results released today show promising signs in terms of workplace flexibility, they also show more work needs to be done to ensure the flexible arrangements can be accessed by all employees.
EOWA Director, Anna McPhee, said: “While it is extremely positive to observe from the survey that more employers are helping their staff to maintain a work/life balance, employers need to carefully consider whether the flexibility policies and strategies being implemented are being properly communicated and can be equally accessed by all employees across the organisation.â€
“It is important that flexible working arrangements do not become stigmatised, resulting in those who are more likely to access these arrangements being disadvantaged in recruitment processes and when promotions, bonuses and development opportunities are awarded.
“All employees need to achieve a work/life balance whether this is to fulfil their family responsibilities or pursue other activities such as study, private business and sporting activities.â€
- ENDS -
The full survey results are available by clicking here.
Example of Alcoa’s flexible work policies and entitlements:
- Full-time employees, below management level, are offered one leisure day off (LDO) each month. If they do not take the LDO, they are paid out for those days in December each year.
- 13 weeks paid maternity leave and 1 week paid paternity leave.
- Job-sharing arrangements can be offered for some job roles.
- Work from home arrangements. This is either on an as needs basis, however some employees work totally from home.
- Alcoa is open to part-time arrangements for women returning from maternity leave.
- Flexible start and finish times for some job roles. Alcoa has mutual trust with its employees. Those who take advantage of flexible start and finish times make up their lost business hours time by putting in after-hours work when their family needs have been met.
This year, Alcoa was again named an ‘Employer of Choice for Women’ by EOWA for the seventh consecutive year.
Background to proposed Government funded paid parental leave:
Visit: http://www.pc.gov.au/projects/inquiry/parentalsupport
Alcoa media contact: Sarah Tempest 0404 800 417
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