WORKPLACE CULTURE & EQUALITY ACTION PLANS
Lasting change starts in the workplace. Through Breaking Barriers, the AMWU is working with Tradeswomen Australia and Australian Industry Group to help employers and workers develop workplace culture and equality action plans.
Each plan is shaped by the experiences of people in the workplace and sets out practical steps to improve inclusion, safety and opportunities for women. The focus is on changing the conditions that create barriers, with workers and management sharing responsibility for making progress.
OUR PROCESS:
1. Set up a workplace committee
We bring together workers, union representatives and management to guide the work. The committee creates a place to hear different experiences, identify barriers and agree on priorities.
2. Apply the AMWU/TWA Framework
The committee works through six domains identified in the Women’s Voices from the Floor Report to assess where the workplace is now. This helps the group look beyond individual incidents and consider the systems, practices and culture that shape women’s experiences at work.
Leadership and Accountability: Hold leaders accountable to KPIs on culture and equality.
Workforce Participation and Retention: Track women’s entry, progression, and provide structured pathways.
Inclusive Workplace Culture: Enforce policies, ensure adequate facilities, and support peer networks.
Psychosocial Safety: Treat harassment, bullying, and exclusion as the health and safety hazards that they are.
Reporting and Support: Provide safe, confidential, independent reporting channels, including anonymous and independent channels.
Monitoring and Transparency: Audit, publish, and benchmark progress over time, both internally and externally where required.
3. Develop an action plan
The committee turns those findings into practical actions, with clear responsibilities and timeframes. The plan reflects what workers have raised and what the workplace can change.
4. Review progress
The committee checks what has been done, seeks feedback from workers and updates the plan as needed. The aim is lasting change that can be seen and felt on the shop floor.
ENTERPRISE BARGAINING
BREAKING BARRIERS AT THE BARGAINING TABLE
Practical clauses for better workplaces
These model clauses have been developed through the Victorian Trades Hall Council's Workplaces for Women Project and align with the AMWU's Breaking Barriers: Women in Trades and Tech workplace culture and equality initiatives.
Each clause provides a practical way to improve workplace culture, strengthen gender equality and support the recruitment and retention of women in our industries.
Every clause negotiated is a step towards a fairer, more inclusive workplace. While all four clauses work best together, even securing one is a positive outcome.
Women’s Advocates
A trained workplace representative, with similar rights and entitlements to a union delegate, who provides support to workers experiencing discrimination, sexual harassment, bullying and other gender-based workplace issues.
PRIORITY 1
Flexibility
Strengthens workers’ access to flexible work arrangements, including changes to hours, shifts and work patterns.
PRIORITY 2
Amenities
Safe, clean and accessible amenities and facilities help ensure all workers feel respected and able to do their jobs.
Reproductive Health Leave
Supports workers to not have to choose between their reproductive health and their income.
Parental Leave
Supports workers to care for and bond with their new child without sacrificing financial security or their career.
CAMPAIGNS
“Why can’t your wife?”
“Why can’t your wife take time off?” It’s a question too many fathers and partners hear when they ask for parental leave or flexibility. It assumes caring is women’s responsibility and makes it harder for men to take an active role at home.
Our campaign calls on workplaces to support every worker to take leave, care for their family and share parenting responsibilities. Changing this expectation is part of building more equal workplaces for everyone.
From Prostate to Pregnancy: Paid Leave for Every Worker
“Why can’t your wife take time off?” It’s a question too many fathers and partners hear when they ask for parental leave or flexibility. It assumes caring is women’s responsibility and makes it harder for men to take an active role at home.
Our campaign calls on workplaces to support every worker to take leave, care for their family and share parenting responsibilities. Changing this expectation is part of building more equal workplaces for everyone.