The Pilot has seen 19 public sector agencies award contracts worth more half a billion dollars to suppliers that completed a gender equality clause in the procurement process.
Through the Department of Finance, the WA Government is joining with industry for a pioneering gender equality pilot to deliver results for women in construction in Western Australia.
The $63 million Fremantle Hospital 40-bed Mental Health redevelopment is the first State Government construction project to trial gender equality targets and reporting.
The pilot aims to increase female representation on non-residential construction projects and demonstrate what can be achieved by female talent within the construction industry.
The State Government is working with ADCO Construction to deliver the 40 additional mental health beds at Fremantle Hospital, which will expand treatment and support options for patients in the southern corridor.
The female team from ADCO is comprised of contract administrators, a safety adviser, site engineer and apprentice supervisor.
In addition, the Department of Finance, South Metropolitan Health Service and State consultants all have strong representation of women delivering the project, including project directors, senior managers, project officers, architects and an interior designer.
In an effort to boost gender equality further, Government Trading Enterprises (GTEs) will participate in a Gender Equality in Procurement Pilot starting in July. Several port authorities, Synergy and Aqwest will be taking part in this pilot, which requires suppliers to those GTEs to demonstrate their compliance with Workplace Gender Equality Agency reporting requirements.
The outcomes achieved through these pilots will be reported under the Stronger Together plan. The Stronger Together 2023 Progress Report outlines 19 new actions that were successfully introduced last year. These included the passing of legislation to reform WA’s abortion laws, provision of free menstrual health products at TAFE colleges and support for the hosting of five Women’s World Cup matches in Perth in July and August.
For more information on the Gender Equality in Procurement – WA Public Sector Pilot visit our website.
