As politicians stew on the idea of altering legislation that discriminates against gay and lesbian couples, Telstra, one of Australia’s largest employers has announced landmark policy changes that could benefit up to 10,000 LGBTI employees Australia wide – and they are keen to work with other organisations who want to do the same.
The shift comes after Chief Executive Officer Sol Trujillo established the Telstra Diversity Council in 2006, after he himself was the victim of discrimination due to his Hispanic background.
Andrew Maiden, Telstra News Director, told OUTinPerth, ‘After being discriminated against himself in a conservative business environment in the United States, Sol made a commitment that discrimination was unacceptable in any arena where he had influence.
‘It’s his aim to create an organisation that meets the changing needs of both the community and our employees. The big picture here is that Telstra has changed pretty fast. Twenty years ago it was a company dominated by an engineering culture, and if there was such a thing as a typical employee, it was a middle aged man with a beer gut. Now we are employing people from a range of different backgrounds including a mix of age, gender, culture and sexuality, and this is something that Sol is strongly committed to.’ÂÂ
Last month the Diversity Council issued a statement that outlined over 170 changes to policy that the company will implement to redress organisational discrimination against gay and lesbian employees, including adoption of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission definition of de-facto relationships, access to leave entitlements and relocation costs for partners.
‘It will give gay or lesbian employees the right to take leave if their partner or child is sick, whilst also making it easier for the company to pay expenses of partners who need to move interstate due to their partners work with Telstra,’ Mr. Maiden said.
‘In addition to those things that are directly related to Telstra policies, we are encouraging employees to ensure that their superannuation policy allows them to nominate their same-sex partner as their beneficiary and that partners can access superannuation in the event or illness.’
OiP spoke to an LGBTI employee who works in Telstra’s Perth Call Centre. She praised the policy change saying that it will have a real affect on her and her partner.
‘The biggest thing for me is that I no longer will have to be worried when I call in to access carer’s leave when my partner is sick, but it has also made me more confident disclosing my sexuality to colleagues and managers,’ she said.
LGBTI Rights Groups, including Australian Coalition of Equality, have also given qualified support to the changes, but have sought clarification around whether or not overseas civil unions will be recognised by the company.
Telstra has indicated that the changes are part of an ongoing strategy to establish the organisation as an employer of choice in the current market, though they are also willing to work with other organisations to develop similar strategies.
‘As unemployment gets lower and the workforce gets more competitive, we think those companies with open minded approaches to recruiting staff will prosper. The more we can be a leader in this field, the better, and we would be very enthusiastic about working with other organisations who are looking to make similar changes,’ said Mr. Maiden.
