13. LGBTQ+ NETWORKS AND ASSOCIATIONS

I'd love to see a poster of just men and women in [personal protective equipment], construction gear on site, the real stuff and everyone looks the same, but they're all different people … That’s what I'm trying to get across, you can't actually tell [their differences], if everyone’s dressed the same you can't tell. And you know it’ll be some sort of tag line you know “We all recognise as being LGBTI” you know very simple …There's no flags, there's no ribbons, there's no nothing.

Gay, male 40s

A discrete rainbow sticker on a supervisor’s folder or desk could communicate to employees that they are receptive and approachable to discuss LGBTQ+ concerns.

While updating workplace forms to enable people to identify as LGBTQ+ was seen as validating for individuals who wanted to more accurately report their identity, it was also described as a way of ‘normalising’ gender and sexual diversity more generally. Giving this option on documentation also communicated to everyone that it was not necessary to conform to one specific social identity and gave people more “freedom to explore a lot more about themselves then they might have otherwise” (Gay, male, 40s).

I think these days in a lot of situations we're starting to find a lot more allies within the construction industry. So, I'm really passionate about driving this as well for gay men who are in the industry and they must feel really horrible. And I think that's part of the reason that we have such a high rate of suicide in the industry as well is because there's people that can't be themselves and constantly worrying that they'll be outed.

Non-binary, 20s

The existence of LGBTQ+ networks or employee resource groups were important indicators of LGBTQ+ inclusion and contributed to employees feeling safe to come out.

I would feel safe coming out when there is a Diversity and Inclusion committee in a company, otherwise I wouldn't feel safe to come out.

Gay, male, 30s.

Notably though, multiple subcultures exist in large organisations and different parts of the business can approach LGBTQ+ inclusion differently.

[I noticed] there was an employee resource group, only for LGBTI. I participated with them, and I got involved heavily with activities. I find that their value proposition to be an all-inclusive workforce, to – if you look at the way they’re driving now for gender equity and female financial security, and having signed the marriage equality letter, looking, at least, to be able to try and work in the transgender space, to understand how people of transgender identity are able to work seamlessly in an environment, but also, if they were to transition, how they would do on that platform. In my mind, they’re sophisticated ways of working in the workplace, and they seem to have the appetite to really stretch their bandwidth.

Gay, male 40s

LGBTQ+ employee resource groups across various companies recently collaborated to establish Interbuild, a network that will take a sector-wide approach to LGBTQ+ inclusion:

[Interbuild comprises] businesses with a LGBTI [employee resource group] presence and LGBTI groups, forging relationships between organisations to drive change and inclusivity, to focus on events, activities, to build that network and do what I understand is to bring building businesses together, because there’s not an overwhelming sense of representation across the sector.

Gay, male 40s

Social media is important for LGBTQ+ networking in national companies operating across urban and remote areas:

I'm trying to reach out as much as I can with LinkedIn there. ‘Cause that’s the only thing, I'm not in the office environment, I'm remote. I'm 9 hours away from Sydney ... I don’t have that opportunity to get to the cities. So, I'm just trying to send out communications via LinkedIn really.

Gay, male, 30s.

Concerns or anticipation of negative reactions to disclosing transgender or non-binary identity can be a barrier to building supportive peer networks, in part because it was difficult