Gender Diversity is no more a buzzword in the industry in contemporary times. It is rather a necessity and a well-accepted fact. Several studies have proven that a workplace comprising of a gender diverse and inclusive population tend to be more equitable, innovative and profitable in their operations. This is not just because of the employment of more women that creates an impact, rather the unison of complimenting working style of men and women.
In a recent ground-breaking event, the company held a unique e-Women’s Day celebration, mobilising over 300 of their women employees through video conferencing. The event was attended by Inspector General of Police (Udaipur) – Ms. Binita Thakur, who herself is an icon for women empowerment. Digitisation is a key focus area for Hindustan Zinc, and Ms. Binita was impressed with how a simple concept of celebrating Women’s Day could be digitally integrated to amplify the reach. Through this event, Ms. Binita shared her insights with more than 300 female employees of Hindustan Zinc across their operating areas of Udaipur, Kayad, Agucha, Chanderiya and Dariba in Rajasthan and Pantnagar in Uttarakhand.
While women empowerment remained the central theme at this event, issues like women health and safety were also pivotal. Integrating digitisation and safety, the company came up with an application called the V-Safe app, to promote safety among employees. Conceptualised to ensure safety of all employees, the V-Safe application uses state of the art technology and alerts the kin and colleagues of the user of any emergency situation they might be in. Along with this, a safety kit especially for the women employees was also distributed, promoting the company’s values of ‘Meri Suraksha, Meri Zimmedari’.
Promoting young women leaders acts as an added motivation for the aspiring workforce, for which Mrs. Priya Agarwal Hebber was a great example. Currently the Non-Executive Director of Vedanta Resources, the holding company of Hindustan Zinc, Mrs. Priya shared her insights and visions to drive gender inclusivity at this event, along with inputs from the Executive Committee of Hindustan Zinc.
It is imperative to cultivate gender diversity at workplace which goes beyond equal representation of males and females. Hindustan Zinc currently drives a diversity rate of 14% steadily increasing this rate from a significant enhancement in women workforce by 6% in FY2019 and now at 2% in FY2020. Within 2 years, their women workforce has grown from a mere 20 employees to almost 600 women across functions at their operational sites.
