National Reconciliation Week at BMD

Last week, BMD sites and offices across the country participated in National Reconciliation Week celebrating the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

BMD proudly acknowledges the contribution our Indigenous employees, subcontractors and suppliers make to our work and industry, with some Indigenous staff who have been engaged with us for more than six years.

Our commitment is to provide long-term career opportunities for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander peoples, and over the past decade we have worked to engage and train Indigenous employees with the establishment of Indigenous participation plans on numerous projects.

BMD Group Executive Director – Operations, Scott Power said, “BMD are committed to making reconciliation part of our story and our future, and the events staff participated in across the country last week, provided an opportunity for us to learn more about reconciliation.

“BMD’s policies, plans, initiatives and training programs reflect the Group’s commitment to equal opportunities and we are proud of our diverse workforce and their contribution,” Mr Power said.

BMD has a long history of Indigenous engagement initiatives and tailored training opportunities. As part of BMD’s ongoing commitment, a national partnership with the Clontarf Foundation was formally introduced last year. This partnership will improve education and vocational opportunities for young Aboriginal men across Australia.

BMD established a working group to begin formally documenting our commitment to workforce diversity through a Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). In its early stages, the RAP working group has been established to discuss and evaluate strategies which will form a part of our RAP.

Our RAP will document our commitment within our sphere of influence to contribute to reconciliation in Australia. It will outline practical actions we can take to build strong relationships and enhanced respect between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and other Australians, and it will set out BMD’s aspirational plans to drive greater equality by pursuing sustainable opportunities.

“The RAP is just that, it is the next step for BMD in formally documenting our journey to create social change and economic opportunities for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians, and make a positive contribution to the communities in which we work. In a few years’ time, we will be able to look back and reflect on what has been achieved and how our RAP reflects that,” Mr Power said.