Engineers Australia is committed to an engineering profession that is as diverse as the community it serves and as the peak body for Australian engineering, we must lead the way.

This commitment involves working across cultural, institutional, societal and organisational factors with our members, industry partners, government agencies, academia and the broader community that limit diversity and inclusion in the profession.

Engineers Australia is committed to achieving at least 30% female representation on the Board of Directors, College Boards and other National Committees by 2020.

We are well on our way to achieving this goal, but there is still work to do. See how we are performing to our targets here.

Our member Guidelines on Professional Conduct, which encourage members to apply skills without bias, discrimination or harassment and to support and encourage diversity.

Diversity and Inclusion Positioning Statement

Our positioning statement is guided by the organisation’s strategic goals to create tomorrow’s engineers, provide a professional home for life and be the trusted voice of the profession.

The purpose of the document is to inform industry, academia and government stakeholders and our members of the actions that Engineers Australia is undertaking to promote diversity and inclusion within our profession, and to provide tools and information to assist our stakeholders and members implement their own diversity and inclusion goals and actions.

READ THE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION POSITIONING STATEMENT

What is diversity?

A diverse workplace understands that each individual is unique, recognising individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, or other ideologies. They are the same attributes that represent our diverse community.

What is inclusion?

Inclusion, while closely related, is a separate concept from diversity. An inclusive workplace can be defined as “the achievement of a work environment in which all individuals are treated fairly and respectfully, have equal access to opportunities and resources, and can contribute fully to the organisation’s success”.

An inclusive culture is about creating a deep sense of belonging, where every employee is valued and their ideas heard.

Engineers Australia's commitment

Engineers Australia is committed to representing and supporting our profession towards achieving a more diverse and inclusive workforce.

We demonstrate this commitment by participating in a number of activities, including the following:

Promoting gender diversity through participation in the Male champions of Change (MCC) STEM Group.

Ongoing focus on gender balance and female membership through the national Women in Engineering committee.

Promoting diversity and inclusion best practice as an active member of the Diversity Council.

Promoting our LGBTQI+ activities as an active member of Pride in Diversity.

Further developing our Indigenous Engineers Group (IEG) activities and membership through the College of Leadership and Management.

Creating an InterEngineer community to support our LGBTQI+ engineers.

Working in partnership with allied bodies to assist our members and the engineering community to achieve their diversity goals.

Practical Implementation for our Profession

As part of our commitment, Engineers Australia will continue to assist industry partners and academia achieve their diversity and inclusion goals by providing meaningful resources addressing important areas such as: