On 30 April 2024, the Australian Public Service Commission published the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) Employment Strategy and Action Plan (the Strategy).
While the APS broadly reflects the cultural and racial diversity in Australia, representation drops sharply at senior levels. CALD APS employees report higher levels of discrimination and racism.
The APSC consulted widely with multiple stakeholders, including APS employees and external organisations, to understand the workplace experience for Australians from CALD backgrounds in the APS. In late 2023, the APSC circulated these results and a toolkit of proposed actions for public consultation.
The Strategy draws from the insights gained from the consultation process and proposes key actionable items for APS agencies to follow and implement.
The overall objectives of the Strategy are that the APS:
- Ensures a safe, fair, equitable and inclusive workplace that is free from racism, discrimination, bullying and harassment.
- Understands and builds on the diversity of the current workforce.
- Enables people to make a full contribution and empowers them to fulfil their potential.
- Creates a level playing field and a fair go for all APS employees.
- Builds representation of CALD employees at senior levels.
A particular emphasis of the Strategy is on five Headline Actions to drive and sustain the changes needed to address the issues identified, with a high-level implementation Strategy and the accountability framework to help APS agencies track and report on the actions to be undertaken.
The five Headline Actions for the Strategy are:
- Whole of APS standards: Introduce an APS Statement of Leadership to Support Cultural Diversity to ensure that the standard for culturally respectful and safe workplaces is upheld.
- Cultural understanding: Build an APS-wide interagency CALD Champion network and a curated collection of multi-media learning resources.
- Leadership and management: Build APS leadership through embedding cultural capability training and sponsorship of CALD employees.
- Recruitment and progression: Modernise the APS recruitment and promotion processes to apply a rigorous understanding of merit.
- Representation: Introduce a reportable benchmark of 24% for CALD representation in the SES.
Beyond the headline actions, progress can be made at agency level (D&I or HR) and by individual managers. This is a Strategy that everyone can enact as inclusive leadership is everyone’s responsibility.
This Strategy is call to action for all APS employees to reflect on our increasing cultural diversity as a nation and on how we embrace this as part of our national character and incorporate it in our daily work. It is an integral part of making APS representative of the Australian population and an employer of choice for all Australians.