Wear it Purple Day for diversity
Behind Wear it Purple Day is a simple message: we each have the right to be proud of who we are. On Friday people throughout the property industry will be showing they agree.
Wear it Purple Day aims to show lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex and queer (LGBTIQ) people everywhere that they are supported.
“Inclusion means everyone is comfortable to bring their ‘whole self’ to work, and that employee differences are valued,” says Antony Keenan, The GPT Group’s head of optimisation, retail.
The GPT Group’s network of straight allies, which numbers nearly a third of employees, will be hosting events throughout the company’s assets ,encouraging their colleagues to wear purple and discuss the importance of the day, Keenan says.
Scentre Group will be celebrating Wear it Purple Day for the third year running, and centre manager Christopher Zerial says celebrations will focus on “activities and storytelling that reinforce our inclusive culture”, including morning teas and interactive quizzes.
“For us, diversity means recognising and valuing the contribution of people with different backgrounds, different perspectives and experiences. Inclusion means we ensure that people’s differences are embraced,” Zerial says.
Scentre Group has an active LGBTI inclusion network, Left, Right & Scentre, which issupported by more than 260 Allies who’ve undertaken specific LGBTI training. Zerial says Scentre Group has reviewed its policies to ensure we “are inclusive of the LGBTI community in everything we do” and most recently received bronze status in the Australian Workplace Equality Index.
CBRE also met the bronze benchmarks outlined by the Index established by Pride in Diversity to help companies gauge the impact of their inclusion initiatives on workplace culture.
Mark Sangiuliano, CBRE’s Head of Design and LGBTI Lead, says his company peers will be donning purple and hosting themed morning teas, with money raised to support Out for Australia, a national charity supporting and mentoring LGBTIQ professionals as they navigate their way through the early stages of their career.
CBRE has an active employee group, BE@CBRE, which has helped the company to evolve policies to support LGBTIQ inclusive language and a dedicated human resources advisor.
Over at EY, offices will be adorned with purple balloons and streamers, and Heather Geary, EY’s diversity and inclusion leader for Oceania, says “symbols are important”.
The firm’s LGBTI network, EY Unity, will be holding best-dressed competitions, morning teas and fundraisers across its Australian and New Zealand offices.
Geary says EY regularly reviews policies to ensure they are supportive and inclusive of LGBTIQ people. For example, the family leave policy includes LGBTIQ people who are prospective adoptive parents or undergoing IVF or a surrogacy arrangement, and there is a transitioning and intersex policy for gender-diverse employees.
Sangiuliano says inclusion is “first and foremost, it’s about making sure everyone can be their true, authentic selves at work”.
“We believe that diversity of thought also results in better decision making,” Sangiuliano adds. “This is something our clients are asking for – and if we want to attract and retain the best talent, we need to make sure we are hiring form every talent pool,” Sangiuliano adds.