Mobility @Siemens

Siemens puts Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at the heart of everything we do through policies and initiatives to create and sustain a diverse and inclusive working environment. This submission demonstrates the strategy and policies implemented that has delivered 60% by value of Network Rail’s total CP5 re-signalling workbank, with a diverse and inclusive workforce that has grown to include 21% female apprentices, 7% black, Asian, or minority ethnicity (BAME) and 4% lesbian, gay, bi-sexual or trans-gender (LGBT), amongst many backgrounds. We have also worked hard to support and encourage women into transportation and engineering, to attract military leavers into the business and retain our talent. Our annual personnel EDI surveys assess our performance and each office has an EDI steering committee to raise issues and improve awareness.

Our Corporate level strategy We draw on initiatives within a comprehensive EDI policy for all projects to include:

• An ongoing commitment to diversity from leadership
• Monitoring equality of opportunity and diversity and encouraging continuous improvement
• Recognising and valuing differences of employees, promoting dignity and respect for all
• Not positively discriminating; equality is always about the best person for the role
• Opposing intimidation, discrimination, harassment, bullying and victimisation.

We have established EDI Steering Groups tasked with improving our workforce and environment, and empowered local EDI throughout our business. These groups organise activities such as International Women and Men’s Day, and Inclusion Week. Our executive team sponsors Diversity and Inclusion programmes such as flexible working, diverse recruitment, EDI in project delivery and STEM. Resulting initiatives include our Back to the Future returners programme (helping people re-join work after a career break) and Fairness, Inclusion and Respect (FIR) Pilots (combating discrimination in the workplace). We undertake ‘Reverse Mentoring’ at executive level to promote continuous learning and diversity between different generations and experience levels in the business. To support onsite equality, we use the FIR toolkit for the Construction Industry (featuring the four Toolbox Talks for Site Operatives); and BS76005:2017, valuing people through diversity and inclusion. We have over 300 line managers trained in unconscious bias. To ensure fairness in reward and recognition, Siemens uses a ‘Round Table’ process: peer-reviewed performance assessment conducted in a group to remove individual bias and ensure fair-minded consensus on employees’ performance.