Shotton steelworkers embrace equity on International Women’s Day

Men and women of steel are today ‘embracing equity’ in support of International Women’s Day (IWD 2023) through a series of workshops and networking events.

Employees across the company are also being asked to share an ‘embrace’ selfie to show their support for this year’s campaign.

Jo Evans, Director of Tata Steel’s Building Systems business said: “Our industry is a fantastic place to build an exciting career, with women in every part of our UK business—from operations and engineering to research, sales and central functions—making a huge impact every day.

“The discussions we’re having this year around the difference between equality and equity are really helpful in making sure we’re striving for equal outcomes for all.”

Opening Tata Steel’s day of activities was keynote guest speaker, Debbie Jones, Professor of Criminology and Interim Head for the School of Social Sciences at Swansea University.

She said: “The more discussions we can have about topics such as equity, diversity and inclusion, the more likely we are to make progress towards a more inclusive and effective workplace and society. I’m absolutely thrilled that Tata Steel is embracing the campaign so actively this year and am delighted to be asked to share my own thoughts and experiences.”

This year’s IWD 2023 campaign highlights equity rather than equality: Equality means each individual or group of people is given the same resources or opportunities, whereas Equity recognizes that each person has different circumstances, and allocates the exact resources and opportunities needed to reach an equal outcome.

Karis Forrester, Customer Services Representative from Building Systems UK in Shotton said: “While it’s a bit of fun to take selfies embracing the campaign, it’s much more important that we all get involved in conversations about equality and equity – no matter who you are or what you do, you can speak up and make a difference every day.”

Tata Steel is also relaunching its Steel Women’s Network, which aims to provide a forum that positively informs and influences the role of women in steel, and to inspire future generations to be involved in the industry.

Jo added: “We are a business that is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive culture that is representative of the society in which we all live; that means a culture where everyone feels they can bring their authentic self to work and feel empowered to reach their full potential.”

Pictured - Keynote speaker: Professor Debbie Jones of Swansea University.