As an organization operating within a diverse national and international community, Manish Quilt Company is committed to developing policies, practices and ways of working that support diversity. Diversity encompasses gender, race, ethnicity and cultural background, age, physical abilities and religious beliefs. Diversity enables encouraging and fostering. We see additional benefits from diversity being a broader pool of high-quality candidates and employees, and improved employee retention. Manishs approach to improving diversity within the Company will assist in achieving the following objectives: 1. A diverse and skilled workforce, leading to improved in-service delivery and achievement of corporate goals; 2. A workplace culture characterized by inclusive practices and behaviors for the benefit of all staff; 3. Improved employment and career development practices and opportunities for all staff; 4. A work environment that values and utilizes the contributions of employees with diverse backgrounds, experiences and perspectives; 5. Rewarding and remunerating fairly; and 6. Awareness in all staff of their rights and responsibilities with regards to fairness, equity and respect for all. Diversity in business increases competitiveness in new markets; expands market share through access to new markets; deepens customer loyalty and increases shareholder value; enhances the employee talent pool; increases creativity, production and revenue; and, improves recruitment and morale. It's a good way to multiply business return on investment. Employees have the right to seek advice or pursue their complaint externally when they are being discriminated against or harassed in work because of their: sexual preference, transgender status, race, color, ethnic or ethno-religious background, descent or national identity, marital status, disability, age, political conviction and religious belief. Many Complaints and grievances from female workers who are expecting to be mother in workplace shows the requirement to draft and implement policy with existing policy to be topped up Parental leave policy by stakeholder, with 26 weeks paid leave the minimum standard recommended by the World Health Organization and also Senior employees to formally stay in touch with women on parental leave on a regular basis and provide assistance to help them successfully transition back to work. The PPL evaluation indicates the majority (75 per cent) of employers who had used Keeping in Touch (KIT) provisions felt it benefited their organization The impact of short parental leave is not limited to infants, as mothers also suffer when they do not have enough leave available to them. Negative outcomes of an early return to work include poorer physical health and well-being, feelings of stress and poorer mental health, including anxiety and depression. Taking away the additional nine weeks parental leave that 1
Develop and implement diversity policy
employers provide, on average, effectively reducing parental leave from 27 to 18 weeks, is enough to make a real difference to mothers. The women who took between 13 and 26 weeks parental leave were more likely to report that they were suffering from mental distress for up to two years than women who took more than 26 weeks Stakeholders are responsible for understanding staff role in promoting diversity within the organization, communicating and implementing policies and procedures effectively and working with staff to integrate the values of diversity into employment practices. Other similar organizations also practice for inclusion in a new diversity policy which assists organization understanding necessity and benefits of female employees on parental leave on regular basis and all employees undergo diversity training. Diversity training encompasses raising awareness about issues surrounding diversity and developing diversity management skills. Manish Company is committed to an inclusive workplace that embraces and promotes diversity. These policy assisting woman on parental leave and keeping in touch with them successfully transition back to work provides a framework for new and existing diversity related initiatives and polices within their business. Part2 . DRAFT POLICY AND PLAN FOR IMPLEMENTATION. Although increasingly businesses are investing in a wide range of programs to support gender diversity, the change has been slow. As a result, any policy that reduces income to women and families during parental leave is a bad thing. It will put additional pressure on families and is likely to mean mothers will have to return to work earlier than they wanted to, reducing valuable time with their newborns. Importantly, this change will only add to the wage gap that women experience as a result of having children. And with some 47% of currently eligible mothers expected to lose all or part of the payment, it is going to affect a lot of people. The following implementation of the proposed Paid Parental leave policy an independent review be carried out two years into its operation in order to make any necessary modifications and improvements and so that a second stage of paid leave measures be introduced so that in total the policy provides for: a) Existing policy to be topped up by employer-funded policy, with 26 weeks paid leave rather than 18 weeks. b) KIT Provision that Senior employees to formally stay in touch with women on parental leave on a regular basis and provide assistance whenever necessary The current schemes 18 weeks paid leave at the minimum wage provides the basic level of support new parents really need to adequately bond with their newborn and establish breastfeeding. It was always the intention that the existing policy be topped up by employerfunded policy, with 26 weeks paid leave the minimum standard recommended by the World 2
Develop and implement diversity policy
Health Organization. Stakeholders should increasingly commit to providing paid parental leave; they should see it as a vital tool to attract and retain talent. Any reduction in the amount of support for women and families from the Government-provided scheme may mean stakeholders will need to increase their support to fill the gap - In addition, there are no incentives to encourage organizations to offer more flexible work which is critical to parents being able to manage their caring responsibilities whilst remaining attached to the workplace.. Businesses with flexible working arrangements, including good parental leave policies, can benefit from: 1. Lower staff turnover, resulting in lower recruitment and training costs 2. Recognition as an employer of choice 3. Improved employee satisfaction and commitment 4. Greater ability to attract new employees 5. Smoother transitions for employees between work and parental leave. This proposed paid leave scheme an independent review be carried out two years into its operation in order to make any necessary modifications and improvements and so that a second stage of paid leave measures be introduced PART 3. IMPLEMENT DIVERSITY POLICY Implementing proposed diversity policies in Manishs Quilt Company sets out the matters that must be considered. The current Paid Parental Leave Policy provides Parental Leave Pay to eligible primary careers of newborn. Eligible families receive up to 18 weeks payment. There is need to be review by stakeholders for the payment duration to be extended from 18 to 26 weeks Taking away the additional eight to nine weeks parental leave that employers provide, on average, effectively reducing parental leave from 27 to 18 weeks, is enough to make a real difference to mothers. For implementation of this policy there is to be Conduct consultations with a key stakeholders, consultation meetings and teleconferences to be conducted and also written submissions on the implementation of this policy. A public consultation process is also to be undertaken as part of this policy that includes a public submission phase, including a general call for submissions and direct emails to employee, employer and community peak bodies; face-to-face consultation with key stakeholders; and the formation of this policy Steering Committee made up of representatives from employer, employee, women's and community groups. Face to face meetings with Stakeholders conducting all required information supported by written communication including employee bulletins and newsletters that explains the importance of topping up Parental leave policy for 26weeks. Session conducts explains Employers who will top up paid parental leave are signaling their expectation of a continuing relationship with their employees. This typically translates into increased job satisfaction, greater 3
Develop and implement diversity policy
employee productivity and improved employee loyalty. Many benefits of topping up paid parental leave include: reduced recruitment and training costs, improved staff morale and productivity, improved organizational efficiency through the benefits of long service, e.g. institutional memory, industry, knowledge, networks and contacts. KIT provision keeping in touch with an employee on parental leave includes forwarding staff newsletters, updates and important emails to the employees home email account where appropriate, or arranging for them to have remote access to their work email account where practical, inviting all employees on parental leave to attend any social events, planning days, training or team building days which occur during their leave and arranging a meeting with the employee when they are nearing the end of their leave to discuss the return-to-work expectations of the employee and the employer, such as hours of work, flexible working arrangements, or any adjustments that will need to be made to their role has to be look for. Diversity training encompasses raising awareness about issues surrounding diversity and developing diversity management skills. The entire workforce is also likely to need training to increase their awareness, understanding, acceptance, alignment and commitment, including 1. Awareness of the Policy and understanding the business case for increasing the participation of mother in the workforce 2. Understanding of what an inclusive workplace looks like and its benefits to all employees and to the business 3. Understanding of this new policies and procedures and how they affect individuals in the organization 4. Understanding of conscious and unconscious bias awareness of discrimination and harassment, obligations and company policy PART 4 . REVIEW DIVERSITY POLICY Parental Paid Policy and KTC provision policies analysis are ongoing process that analyzes new information, considers how mothers roles and diversity groups are changing or remaining the same. This approach considers how mothers in workplace intersect with other socio-economic factors and facilitates monitoring and evaluation of these new policies. Conscious processes to attract, retain, develop and include mother in the workforce will require new skills and approaches from people responsible for managing and leading workers, and will require some people to examine and chManishge their beliefs about mother working in non-traditional occupations and roles. The positive impact of topping up paid parental leave entitlements on the attraction and retention of staff has long been recognized. Policies should be tailored to the specific needs of the employer and employees in a particular workplace. A successful parental leave policy should incorporate innovative and flexible arrangements that assist parents before, during and after a period of parental leave. A best practice stakeholder should facilitate flexible arrangements in their workplace for new fathers and mothers around the time a child is born. It is important to remember that an employee 4
Develop and implement diversity policy
returning from parental leave is legally entitled to return to the same job they held prior to going on leave. If that job no longer exists, they are legally entitled to return to an available position for which they are qualified and suited, which is nearest in status and pay to their pre-parental leave position. There are a number of things an stakeholder and employee should consider to ensure a smooth transition back into work, including: 1. Keeping in Touch with the employee during the period of leave 2. Beginning discussions early about how the employee plans to manage their return to work and what their role will be 3. Speaking to the employee about any accommodations that the employer may be able to make at the workplace, e.g. access to a place for breastfeeding or expressing and storing breast milk; or flexible working arrangements during the early weeks for settling a young child into child care 4. Clearly communicating expectations around working hours and the taking of leave. 5. Giving appropriate consideration to any requests the employee makes for flexible working arrangements. Some ideas to assist employers with keeping in touch with an employee on parental leave include: 1. Sitting down with an employee before they commence their period of leave to discuss key contacts, handovers of work or clients, important dates and milestones during the leave 2. Arranging a pre-determined time to get in touch with an employee on leave, so the employees expectations and preferences concerning contact during parental leave can be considered and managed 3. Making sure a particular person in the workplace is given responsibility to forward important information about the workplace to the employee on leave 4. Forwarding staff newsletters, updates and important emails to the employees home email account where appropriate, or arranging for them to have remote access to their work email account where practical 5. Inviting all employees on parental leave to attend any social events, planning days, training or team building days which occur during their leave CONCLUSION : The topping up Paid Parental Leave policy to 26weeks and KTC provision will help stakeholders: retain valuable and skilled staff by encouraging them to stay connected with the workforce when they become parents; enhance existing family-friendly workplace conditions without having to fund Parental Leave Pay themselves; and in the longer term, increase the workforce participation of parents. Company has noted an increase in the return to work of 5
Develop and implement diversity policy
employees who take paid leave around the birth or adoption of their child, and considers that providing paid leave at this time helps improve the workforce attachment of its employees. Company has found that its parental leave policy, in conjunction with its other family friendly policies, has given it a recruitment edge over its competitors.