The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
NEW DELHI, JJUNE 29, 2023
Vedanta Aluminium, India’s largest producer of aluminium, celebrated Pride Month as an occasion to reaffirm its dedication to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. By welcoming two transgender professionals into its operations at Lanjigarh in Odisha recently, the company now employs nearly 30 transgender employees across all of its primary locations. These include its mega aluminium smelter in Jharsuguda in Odisha, its world-class alumina refinery in Lanjigarh, and its subsidiary BALCO, India’s iconic aluminium producer based in Chhattisgarh.
This comes as a significant achievement in Vedanta Aluminium’s mission to foster a truly diverse workplace, placing the company among a handful of manufacturing and heavy engineering firms in India and the world to include LGBTQIA+ employees within core operations in varied roles such as asset security, materials movement and hospitality.
To ease the community’s transition from the periphery of society to smart manufacturing plants, and help them evolve from semi-skilled people into professionals, Vedanta Aluminium has adopted a three-pronged approach, which includes: Identification of trans people with a minimum required set of skills for working in a manufacturing industry, by conducting skill mapping studies; Extensive training programs for the recruits, aimed at honing the required skillsets, including soft skills and business knowledge; and Building an empathetic & inclusive environment by conducting gender-sensitization sessions for its workforce, with respect to the social and psychological challenges of trans people, proper code of conduct and ways of working to build a cohesive and encouraging environment for all. This also includes ensuring required infrastructural augmentations.
Globally, the gender diversity ratio in manufacturing and heavy engineering industries has been quite low, and this deficit is especially acute in the metals and mining sector.
Recognizing the transformative power of diversity in generating multi-dimensional thinking and strategic decision-making, Vedanta Aluminium has embarked on a mission to break perception barriers to entering the manufacturing industry and is actively fostering a workforce that transcends gender boundaries. Since FY 2022-23, the company is endeavouring to expand its recruitment efforts to actively include members of the LGBTQIA+ community within its workforce, who otherwise often face challenges in securing sustainable livelihoods. With this, the company aims to create a paradigm shift towards acceptance and inclusivity in the manufacturing industry by hiring from this talent pool that remains untapped in mainstream sectors.
On the company’s efforts to strengthen its diverse workforce, Vedanta Ltd – Aluminium Business CEO Rahul Sharma said, “As we navigate the diverse and complex landscape of our global markets and customers, we recognize the immense value of embracing diversity in all its forms. By seeking out individuals with diverse perspectives, experiences, skills, and educational backgrounds, we strengthen our pillar of employee centricity and the ability to develop well-rounded business strategies. True merit transcends gender, and we are committed to fostering a culture where every employee and partner feels embraced, empowered, and encouraged to unleash their limitless potential. We will continue to strive for a future where diversity is celebrated as a catalyst for innovation and success.”
Sharing her experience, Ranjan Pradhan, one of the trans professionals recently hired at Lanjigarh said, “I am grateful for this opportunity to earn a sustainable livelihood and envision a brighter future for my personal and professional growth. Through such initiatives, Vedanta is helping bring the marginalised trans community into the mainstream, and also providing a safe and supportive environment to nurture our true potential.”
Vedanta Aluminium, a business of Vedanta Limited, is India’s largest producer of aluminium, manufacturing more than half of India’s aluminium i.e., 2.29 million tonnes in FY23. It is a leader in value-added aluminium products that find critical applications in core industries. Vedanta Aluminium ranks 2nd in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI) 2022 world rankings for aluminium industry, a reflection of its sustainable development practices. With its world-class aluminium smelters, alumina refinery and power plants in India, the company fulfils its mission of spurring emerging applications of aluminium as the ‘Metal of the Future’ for a greener tomorrow.
