Pride in Diversity’s review of the 2018–2021 LGBTIQ Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan provided critical insights into where Victoria Police needs to improve and where our efforts must be focused to continue building an inclusive workforce.
Despite some substantial achievements made over the past few years, it is evident that Victoria Police can improve LGBTIQ+ inclusion and safety in our workplaces.
The review identified areas of focus to improve our capability.
Governance
The need for a governance or authorising framework to monitor progress and support access and inclusion.
Policy audits
Policies are a key lever in promoting reform. A key action from the 2018–2021 LGBTIQ Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan was to remove binary gender terms from policies to eliminate discrimination and gender stereotypes.
Audit recommendations also included expanding the removal of binary genders to all policies and training. This is supported under the requirements of the Gender Equality Act (s.9).
Trans and gender diverse inclusion
A greater focus is needed on trans and gender diverse employee inclusion in policies, procedures and training as is a dedicated focus on workplace support and inclusion for gender diverse employees.
Employee support program
Employee support programs like VP Pride offer significant aid to the organisation and the community Victoria Police serves. However, employee reference groups require dedication and encouragement from the workplaces in which they operate.
At a strategic level, the evaluation pointed to the need for this plan to include a smaller number of actions targeted to achieve specific outcomes and making a greater impact.
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