I’m delighted to announce that Macquarie University has been recognised as a Silver tier employer in the Australian Workplace Equality Index Awards, which celebrates and acknowledges our progress towards inclusion and equality for people with diverse sexualities and gender identities within the Macquarie University community. We are very proud to receive this title, having jumped up two levels from the previous year’s benchmarking.

We have received Silver status due to our proactive approach to LGBTIQ+ inclusion, and in particular the engagement and activity of our Ally Network; a group of more than 140 staff and students visibly supporting LGBTIQ+ people within our community and advocating for positive growth and change within the University. You may have witnessed or have been involved with the tangible efforts of our Ally Network over the past year, including celebrations on campus to mark days of significance such as IDAHOBIT, the successful campaign for marriage equality in Australia, or perhaps you’ve seen some changes in our policies and services that positively affect LGBTIQ+ staff, for example in our parental leave policy, and our staff benefits offerings. I would personally like to thank our Macquarie University Allies for all of their work, advocacy and commitment.

In the past year we have also launched a new resource; Supporting Trans Employees at Macquarie University: A guide for staff and managers. It is designed to help staff who wish to affirm their gender, navigate the University system, and access the support they need before, during and after gender affirmation processes. It also includes valuable information and resources for managers and colleagues of trans staff. This guideline, along with many other LGBTIQ+ inclusive staff benefits and resources can be found on the University’s Sexual and Gender Diversity webpage.

Each year Macquarie makes a submission for the AWEI Awards in order to benchmark ourselves against organisations nationally in LGBTIQ+ workplace inclusion. The AWEI is an initiative of Pride In Diversity, Australia’s only not-for-profit employer support organisation for LGBTIQ+ workplace inclusion, and is completed annually by more than 130 businesses and universities across the country. Workplaces are judged on a range of criteria including inclusive policies and practices, executive engagement, inclusive facilities and services, employee networks and external visibility. We are now one of only three universities awarded Silver status, while a further eight universities were successful in achieving Bronze.

For more information on LGBTIQ+ inclusion, and information on how to join out Ally network, please visit the Workplace Diversity & Inclusion webpage, or contact the team Workplace Diversity & Inclusion Team. Upcoming Ally Network training schedules can be found on the Ally Network webpage.