Business
P&G Hyderabad organizes equality and inclusion roadshow
Procter and Gamble hosted its first-ever Equality and Inclusion roadshow at its largest manufacturing site in India at Hyderabad, with an aim to drive sensitisation and awareness. Bringing together every employee at P&G Hyderabad – from senior managers with decades of experience to new hires – the event specifically intended to drive sensitise for the entire workforce, including the technicians and line workers. The event comprised of various sessions that helped audience to identify biases, break barriers, and pledge to advance on their journey to be more inclusive.
P&G’s Equality & Inclusion strategy is holistic and integrated, and comprises of efforts towards Gender Equality, LGTBTQ+ inclusion and inclusion of People with Disabilities. The roadshow was kicked off with the unveiling of an inclusive message put up bold and centre at the entrance of the facility, that drives the message of P&G being an inclusive workplace that welcomes everyone, including all members of the LGBTQ community.
The event brought together a panel with activists and experts working to advance these areas of inclusion which comprised of – Ms Meera Shenoy, founder for Youth4Jobs, an NGO that focuses on education and employment of persons with disabilities; Mr. Rohan Joshi, Senior Fellow at Centre for Civil Society, an organization that drives social change through public policy, and Mr. Supriyo Chakraborty, an entrepreneur in event management who is also aggressively working for the inclusion of LGBTQ Community in India’s Jurisdiction framework. The event also included experiential sensitisation for the employees to drive awareness and empathy, from period cramp simulators to basic training in sign language.
Shubhrangsu Dutta, Plant Head – Hyderabad manufacturing site, P&G India said, “At P&G, we believe in an equal tomorrow. Therefore, we aspire to create a company and a world where equality and inclusion is achievable for all; where respect and inclusion are the cornerstones of our culture; where equal access and opportunity to learn, grow, succeed, and thrive are available to everyone. Our efforts at P&G to drive equality and inclusion over the years have led to many programs and initiatives that have paved the way for change across our key focus areas – Gender Equality, inclusion for LGBTQ+ community, and inclusion for People with Disabilities.”
He further added, “I truly believe, that change begins with us. With this first of its kind E&I roadshow, we want to drive sensitization, awareness, and empathy across all levels of the organization within the P&G Hyderabad family, right up till the technicians. It was heartening to see our people engage, challenge the stereotypes they have grown up with, and seek to learn more with the intent to become more inclusive in their approach – starting today. I am hopeful that the learnings from today will not be limited to the workplace and will have a multiplier effect as our people go back as aware citizens, engage within their communities, and inspire others to take positive action.”
Over the years, the P&G Hyderabad site has evolved to be a thought leader on inclusion. When building the manufacturing plant in Hyderabad, P&G India worked with the State Government to grant permission for women to work beyond day shifts. As part of its focus on Diversity & Inclusion, women employees are given foundational trainings including gender diversity and anti-harassment – ensuring that each woman can bring her whole self to work. The plant leadership team has fearlessly and successfully broken down barriers to women’s advancement, thus enabling a trusting, open and inclusive culture where everyone is valued, everyone is included, and everyone is performing at their peak.
P&G Hyderabad continues to create impact, by being one of the first companies to achieve 50% female diversity in NEEM trainee program in manufacturing, thereby enabling the skill development of Females in STEM roles and helping in employability.
With ~35% managers at manufacturing sites being women, P&G India has introduced several initiatives in the past that are driving progress in an endeavour to be a Force for Growth and a Force for Good. From initiatives like ‘P&G Shiksha Betiyan Scholarship Program’, in partnership with Centre For Civil Society (CCS) to raising awareness and challenging stereotypes like Ariel #ShareTheLoad as well as inclusive actions like the annual ‘women in tech’ summit that drives conversations on breathing myths gender equality in tech and IT. P&G recently also revised their policies to be inclusive and extend all benefits to partners of the LGBTQ employees. This builds on top of its ‘Share the Care’ inclusive parental leave policy, which provides all new parents including biological parents, domestic partners, adoptive parents, parents in same-sex couples to 8 weeks of fully paid parental leave. P&G has also been partnering with Pride Circle, India’s premier LGBTQ+ job fair and conference.
