APEGA NEWS
APEGA Receives $350K for Workplace Diversity and Inclusion
APEGA is stepping up its efforts to improve diversity and inclusion in the workplace, thanks to a three-year, $350,000 grant from the Status of Women Canada. The association is one of three Alberta organizations awarded funding for projects that address root causes of economic insecurity for women in Canada. Status of Women Canada is a government organization that promotes economic, social, and democratic equality for women. We’ll use the grant to examine workplace barriers facing female engineering and geoscience professionals—related to pay equity, hiring practices, advancement opportunities, and more. “Data collected during the study will help us develop Canada-wide workplace culture guidelines to help all companies, in any industry, create more inclusive workplaces that fully engage women,” says APEGA Registrar & CEO Jay Nagendran, P.Eng., FEC. The project supports Engineers Canada and APEGA’s 30-by-30 goal to increase the proportion of women in the engineering and geoscience professions to 30 per cent by 2030. Currently, about 13 per cent of professional engineers and 19 per cent of professional geoscientists in Alberta are female.
We want to ensure that women currently working in the professions, and those entering the professions in the future, don’t face unintentional systemic barriers. We want all members to be valued, welcomed, and included in the workforce. PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS We are collaborating with other organizations that champion diversity and promote science and engineering to girls and women. By engaging with these groups, we can use their expertise and avoid duplication of previous work. Partners we’ve begun consulting with are: • Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary • Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology • Alberta Women’s Science Network • Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion
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