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A new approach for diversity and inclusion in employment

We want to ensure our business reflects the communities we operate in, with a key facet of this focusing on having an employee base that mirrors the diversity of the population.

We are reinvigorating our approach to diversity and inclusion in its employment practices to ensure it can recruit and retain colleagues from all walks of life.

Alex Koszegi, Senior Talent Business Partner for Diversity and Inclusion is working to embed diversity in recruitment as a business-as-usual approach, company-wide.

By holding information sessions for managers within each business unit, Alex is both raising awareness and helping managers identify vacancies that could be presented to a wider prospective employee base.

Entry-level positions are advertised through a range of recruitment partners, including those that specialise in underrepresented populations, such as disabled and disadvantaged job seekers, and those from minority groups.

Serco recently launched its Accessibility Participation Plan, which provides a pathway for how it can better support our colleagues with disabilities.

We will also partner with specialist recruitment agencies and vocational training and employment centres to identify candidates for new traineeships leveraging government funding, but it is not only entry-level positions that are being targeted. In an increasingly tight labour market, recruiting outside the box makes good business sense.  

In particular, hiring more women in traditionally male-dominated areas such as defence, and justice and immigration, presents a significant opportunity to both fill people gaps and achieve greater diversity.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion is evidenced also in other programs and partnerships. As a gold partner of the Pinnacle Foundation, which supports scholarships for LGBTIQ+ youth, Serco will take on a program trainee in 2023, and as a platinum partner of Soldier On’s Pathways Program, Serco Asia Pacific employs more than 545 former military personnel.

The contact centre operated on behalf of a Federal Government agency in the Tasmanian town of Burnie is an example of one Serco business unit that has embraced diversity to build a robust workforce. Site manager Rachael Burgess is also the co-chair of the Serco Asia Pacific Inclusion Group (SAIG), a network of colleagues committed to achieving greater diversity and inclusion, which was established in 2021.

Rachael says, "The centre employs several neurodiverse colleagues, including people with mental health conditions, and offers flexible work arrangements and the safety net of mental health first aid trained colleagues."

Rachel Burgess portrait

It also promotes its credentials as a safe space for LGBTIQ+ colleagues and has been able to attract colleagues away from other employers thanks to this visible culture of acceptance.

Rachael says, "As the major employer in the regional city, taking an inclusive and diverse approach to recruitment is important, not only to support the community by offering opportunities for a wide range of people, but also to support better business outcomes."

It’s an approach that pays dividends, with the centre always ranking highly in Serco’s annual colleagues surveys measuring engagement, which link to above average retention rates and years of service when compared to other businesses in the call centre industry.

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