Here at the IS Council, we are dedicated to spotlighting the heroes along the infrastructure supply chain who contribute to sustainability outcomes for people, planet, and the economy with their innovative products and impactful services.
In this webinar we heard from –
Scott Losee from Losee Consulting, Ben Hough from Vital Chemical, Mariana Perez from One Click LCA, Nils Barry from Aspire, Adrian Cahill from RCPA and Adam Ferguson from SiteHive
Presentation – here
Webinar recording – here
In this recording, you can learn about our newest Rating Tool – IS Essentials. IS Essentials enables a Design & As-Built Sustainability Rating for all infrastructure assets with a capital value of $5-100m. Its reduced complexity and use of the digital Ratings Portal and Resource Centre makes it applicable for smaller projects.
* IS Essentials Launch: Patrick Hastings, Chief executive officer at Infrastructure Sustainability Council launches the tool and talks about its value proposition
*08:46 IS Essentials Tool in Action: Andrew Aitken, Program sustainability Principal at Inland Rail will be talking about his experience with the IS Essentials Rating Tool.
*13:15 Tool Development Process & Rating Tool Overview: Tyrel Momberg, Technical Manager at Infrastructure Sustainability Council talks about the tool development process and provides an overview of the Rating tool.
*25:00 Ratings Digitalisation: Rob de Carvalho, Head of Technology at Infrastructure Sustainability Council introduces our new IS Rating Portal, the digitisation journey and shows how it accesses the portal.
*32:34 IS Essentials Training: Hayley Grieves, Head of Learning & Capability at Infrastructure Sustainability Council talks about IS Essentials Training and how you can build your capability and capacity at this phase.
Presentation slides here
Recoding here
Only 12.9% of construction industry professionals are women. But did you know that the figure for infrastructure sustainability professionals is 55%? In this report, Sustainability, a career in construction the ISC have explored how sustainability careers can influence the current culture & diversity challenges that limit the number of female professionals entering and remaining in construction.
Developed with the support of the NSW Government the report presents practical strategies for enhancing the adoption of sustainability skills and advancing diversity within the sector.
The golden thread that runs through Ann Azzopardi’s career story is one of women supporting women.
At instrumental stages of Ann’s career, she has been “lifted up” by inspiring women – and now Ann is elevating the next generation of rising sustainability stars.
This series, developed by the Infrastructure Sustainability Council with the support of the NSW Government, aims to give Australian construction businesses insights and impetus to grow their workforce of female sustainability specialists.
Today, Ann is the Sustainability Practice Lead at WolfPeak. Over her career she has influenced the sustainability outcomes on some of Australia’s largest infrastructure projects.
But when Ann was handed a list of careers in Year 9 and asked to pick three that appealed, sustainability was not something she’d considered. “Almost randomly, I chose accountant, chef and environmental scientist. This was the first time I’d even realised an environmental scientist was a career option.”
With aptitude for science and maths, Ann pursued a Bachelor of Science with Honours, majoring in environmental science and geography. “I was fascinated by the study of how humans interact with the natural world. Sustainability brings together both, so it makes a lot of sense that I ended up working in this space.”
Ann completed her honours year, weighing up a career in academia, but quickly realised it wasn’t for her. After attending a university careers day and applying for many graduate programs, she received several acceptances and opted for John Holland.
Ann’s first role with John Holland was as an environmental graduate on the Glenfield to Leppington Rail Line Project in Sydney. “I was out on site every day, getting my boots dirty, and my father would ask me why I had studied at university to come home from work every day covered in mud. But I loved it.”
The male-dominated atmosphere on site was sometimes daunting, Ann admits. “I had been quite shy growing up, and I found myself in an environment that was very dirty, very masculine and very loud. It was confronting at first, but I quickly grew to love it. I felt part of something bigger and could see how my role mattered to the broader project. This built my confidence.”
There were times when Ann faced unconscious bias, and times when the bias was front-and-centre. “Like most women working in this industry I’ve experienced prejudice and challenging behaviours, which can be difficult to navigate, especially when you’re young”
The most critical confidence builder in the early stages of Ann’s career, she says, was a female leader who saw her capability and gave her responsibility “even when I didn’t think I was ready”.
Dr Caitlin Richards was then an Approvals, Environment and Sustainability Manager at John Holland and had risen through the ranks working on some of Australia’s largest infrastructure projects. At the time, Caitlin was a senior leader in a joint venture team tendering for the North West Rail Link project (now Sydney Metro Northwest).
“Caitlin started her career at a time when it was very difficult for women to succeed in construction. When she was promoted to senior roles, she saw this as an opportunity to lift other women up. As a trailblazer, Caitlin paved the way for many other women to pursue positions of leadership and still be ourselves. She has also always been happy to devote time to assist women in updating their CVs, no matter how busy she is.”
20:20 tunnel vision
Ann worked alongside Caitlin with the winning tender team for North West Rail Link, learning very quickly about environmental approvals and being exposed to some very senior people in the industry. “This was one of the most enjoyable experiences in my career,” Ann reflects. “I grew in confidence, knowing I had this incredible female leader believing in me”.
But after following the project into delivery for another 12 months, Ann became burnt out. “I started to struggle with the early starts on site and regularly finding myself finishing late to stay on top of paperwork. The project was also about to start tunnelling, and that meant nighttime work.”
Sydney Water offered Ann an environmental scientist role, allowing a deeper dive into environmental approvals. “The regular office hours were also appealing, I’m not going to lie”, Ann admits. Leaving John Holland was difficult, but the nearly three years with Sydney Water were rewarding. “I learnt a lot about environment and planning legislation and being on the client side of projects. I gained different perspectives on the industry that have been invaluable.”
The relationships you build during your career often bring unexpected opportunities, and soon Caitlin came calling with a new challenge – the $1.8 billion Sydney Metro City and Southwest Tunnel and Station Excavation works for a consortium which included John Holland, CPB Contractors, and Ghella. Caitlin wanted Ann to take on the Sustainability Manager role.
“I felt like it was a big step forward in my career. I’d always been interested in sustainability management and had spent a lot of time talking to others in the field. It took a leap of faith, but I trusted Caitlin’s judgement and was on site two weeks later with a graduate of my own.”
That graduate was Cindy Liles. Together Ann and Cindy rolled up their sleeves and began leading the charge for sustainability, including preparing the IS Rating submission, for one of the largest infrastructure projects in Australia’s history. The major tunnelling and station excavation works included 15.5 kilometres of twin railway tunnels under Sydney Harbour, as well as the excavation for six new metro railway stations.
The project was subsequently awarded a ‘Leading’ IS Rating and a score of 100 – the highest score achieved at the time. “Cindy and I always joked about wanting to achieve a score of 100 – and much to our surprise, we did.” The project subsequently received the Outstanding Achievement in Infrastructure and Sustainability Award at the 2019 ISC conference. Among the project’s many achievements, it was the first to use an innovative tunnel boring machine assembly methodology which minimised resources, improved safety and reduced impacts on the community.
With the IS Rating for Design finalised and the project entering a new phase, Ann was approached by Tim Stubbs, Director of the environmental consultancy WolfPeak, who was on the hunt for talent. After careful consideration, Ann made the transition to consulting. “The hardest thing was leaving Cindy. But she was so clever, ambitious and hardworking, I could see her career continuing to grow with or without me,” Ann says.
Like Caitlin, Tim saw potential in Ann that she herself didn’t quite recognise. “Tim and our other Director, Steve Fermio, have been hugely supportive of me since I joined WolfPeak. They’ve given me the encouragement and space to gain my footing in consulting and build the sustainability arm of the business.”
Since joining WolfPeak, Ann has become Practice Lead for Sustainability and heads up a growing team of leading sustainability professionals – including “right-hand woman”, Cindy. As Ann says: “Everything has come full circle and I’m now in the privileged position to mentor and support the next generation of female leaders. And I’ll be forever grateful to those who have helped me get here.”
Here at the IS Council, we are dedicated to spotlighting the heroes along the infrastructure supply chain who contribute to sustainability outcomes for people, planet, and the economy with their innovative products and impactful services.
In this webinar we heard from –
Bill Currie from Powerhouse Wind, Maan Shekhawat from Enviromesh, Amanda Bryan from Mott MacDonald, Jackson MacFarlane from Hynds Pipe Systems and Bernice Cumming from Golden Bay and Firth
Presentation – here
Watch our latest IS Update, recorded on May 2, 2024 and hear the latest news and updates from the ISC Team.
In the session our teams cover:
* Ratings & Delivery Update – Michel Colen provided an update on IS Ratings projects and key dates for Registrations and Submission
* Technical and IS Essential Update – Ty Momberg provided an update on ISC Technical work plan, IS Essentials, IS Materials calculator development and opportunities to be part of the Technical Working Groups.
* Market Development – Monique Isenheim talks about ISWAG recommendations work that is underway.
* Learning and Capability – Hayley Grives, talks through various learning opportunities that are available for both personal and professional development.
* Membership and events – Andrea Makris will provide an update on new members, membership, ways to get involved with the ISCouncil, release dates for upcoming ISC Connect Conference.
Access presentation slides – here
At the start of 2024, Australia’s public infrastructure workforce was around 229,000 people short of what was needed to complete the pipeline of projects, according to Infrastructure Australia.
Without improving gender diversity, the infrastructure sector – an industry that employs around 10% of the nation’s workforce – is unable to draw from talent pool of half the population.
At the same time, around 70% of Australia’s emissions are enabled by infrastructure. Both diversity and sustainability are big problems to solve – and Jayne Whitney has spent her career solving big problems.
This series, developed by the Infrastructure Sustainability Council with the support of the NSW Government, spotlights stories of female sustainability leadership. By sharing stories that lay bare the obstacles and outline the opportunities, we hope to give more Australian construction businesses the insights and impetus to grow their workforce of female sustainability specialists.
As Chief Strategy Officer at John Holland, Jayne has amassed some impressive achievements: driving a growth strategy that has helped grow the business, leading successful acquisitions and championing an ambitious digital transformation program.
Jayne is also a Non-Executive Director of the Australian Contractors Association, the Chair of the ACA Culture Committee, a member of the Culture in Construction Taskforce, and a member of Chief Executive Women. Jayne also served two terms on the board of the Infrastructure Sustainability Council.
Jayne’s career has been characterised by a series of ‘pivots’ that turned her towards sustainability slowly but surely.
With a head for numbers, Jayne’s teachers steered her toward a mathematically-based degree, and she completed a Bachelor of Economics with honours “without a clear idea of where this would take me”.
“I knew I didn’t want to be an economist. I really loved studying the subject, but I wasn’t motivated to pursue economics as a career,” Jayne reflects.
During her university holidays, Jayne worked for an engineering business that was expanding into America. On graduating, she put her hand up for a role in the United States. “They agreed, despite there being no particular role for me, and that is how I kicked off my career, initially writing computer programs.” A pivot towards marketing was her next step, and Jayne’s career progressed to roles in strategy and business development.
After completing a master’s degree in international business, Jayne moved to Australia in 1996. She took up a role with Transfield Services and found she loved the infrastructure sector. Roles with AGL Energy, Tenix, UGL and John Holland followed.
While at Tenix Jayne’s talent for problem solving aligned with the great sustainability conundrum. “My CEO at the time was very progressive, and knew we needed to be thinking about sustainability in infrastructure. He could see a gap in our organisation and wanted me to jump into it and work through our approach and how we could lead the industry on sustainable solutions.”
With infrastructure responsible for an “enormous” emissions footprint, Jayne’s mind turned towards the then “embryonic” Infrastructure Sustainability Council. “I recognised the role of the Council as potentially the most impactful mechanism to drive sustainability in the infrastructure industry, and wanted to be part of developing an independent rating tool. As such we committed ourselves to actively supporting the Council and joining the Board”
In 2020, the Infrastructure Sustainability Council undertook research that confirmed the IS rating tool’s return on investment is a minimum of $1.60 for every dollar spent – and this figure could be as high as $2.40. This is over and above the productivity dividend.
But when Jayne joined the ISC board in 2011, the business case for sustainable infrastructure was far from settled.
Jayne was involved in the IS rating tool’s development, and Tenix was the first company to commit to applying the sustainability benchmarks on the $45 million Whitsunday Sewage Treatment Plant Upgrade project, two assets at Proserpine and Cannonvale in north Queensland.
“This was at a time when the general narrative was ‘sustainability costs money; it will make you uncompetitive’. People were yet to understand how sustainability was good for business, good for communities,” Jayne says.
“When we pursued that first rating, I was really clear with the team that we could spend no more money than we would on any other project. It had to be a cost neutral business case, at the very least.”
Translating the theory of sustainable infrastructure and a series of spreadsheets into a real live application was not easy, but the results remain remarkable to this day. Optimising the design cut 1,500 tonnes of carbon emissions, and a further 21,000 tonnes will be eliminated over the lifetime of the two assets, thanks to clever energy reduction strategies.
The project delivered a 43% total life cycle water saving – representing around three gigalitres – from more efficient use of recycled effluent. And a strong commitment to sustainable procurement was achieved, with 61% of the total budget spent in the Whitsunday region.
“We had a project leader who was incredibly passionate and motivated, and he showed other project managers it could be done. The pivot point for us was showing that it would deliver a net benefit without costing more.”
Whitsunday Sewage Treatment Plant Upgrade project was subsequently awarded the first IS Design rating in 2013. This was a “milestone” not only for Tenix, but for Jayne. “This was a pivotal moment for me, as a champion of sustainability, but also to see the project managers open their arms to the possibilities.”
Jayne’s background in economics proved invaluable when selling the business case for sustainability, and her strengths in marketing gave her message additional firepower. “I recognised that I could bring the two together – sustainability and commercial outcomes – to create compelling conversations.”
Jayne is now using those same skills to champion the Culture Standard,built on the pillars of wellbeing, time for life, and diversity and inclusion. She is committed to bringing this Standard to life within the ACA Culture Pledge, through flexibility, embedded cultural change, and attracting more women into the infrastructure industry.
“We know the issues we need to solve. Our challenge is shifting the thinking and ways of doing things that have been entrenched for more than 100 years. The critical success factor is being able to bring together the environmental, social, and capability drivers, with the commercial ones.”
Jayne Whitney, John Holland
Here at the IS Council, we are dedicated to spotlighting the heroes along the infrastructure supply chain who contribute to sustainability outcomes for people, planet, and the economy with their innovative products and impactful services. We are looking forward to presenting the second instalment of our webinar series: “SUPPLIERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT,” a bi-monthly showcase that highlights ISC members listed on the ISupply Directory.
In this webinar we heard from –
Craig Skipsey from Makinex Renewables, Nicholas Morel from InEight, Steph Holland from ResourceCo, Evan Smith from Holcim, Jackson Ellis from Cacti Conserve and Windsor Fick from JWA Composite Matting.
Presentation – here
Webinar recording – here
Register for the upcoming “Suppliers in the Spotlight” webinar on Thursday 30 May – here
As the imperative for sustainability is recognised, with its inclusion in project design and increasingly mandated by authorities around the world, our newest rating tool, the IS v2.1 Planning Rating, is set to change the way decision makers, asset owners, investors, and delivery authorities approach infrastructure planning.
A world-first-of-its-kind, the IS v2.1 Planning Rating offers a framework for embedding sustainability into an asset at its earliest considerations and provides the benchmarks and assurances needed to implement sustainability successfully.
IS Planning training – Available from May 2024
IS for Planning training explores how, by taking into account the whole-of-life impacts of decisions made in the Planning phase, sustainability outcomes can be maximised in the design and construction and operational phases.
If you are not yet an ISAP, completion of the IS Planning training course will provide access to ISAP accreditation exam.
Note
IS Rating Skills is a mandatory prerequisite to this training
Download Brochure – here
Register –here
As the infrastructure sector plays a critical role in shaping sustainable cities and the scale up of renewable energy projects and use of circular materials, we must not ignore the human costs and risks to people in this transition, including modern slavery.
In this session we highlighted some of the modern slavery risks in infrastructure supply chains and how these risks could be present, including practical examples of how to engage with suppliers on these risks. The webinar will include a presentation from the Office of the NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner about how NSW Government agencies are expected to manage modern slavery risks in the infrastructure supply chain and what this means for Government suppliers. We will also provide an update on the broader Australian legislative context and developments in New Zealand, as well as highlighting key resources available to support embedding modern slavery risk management actions across the lifecycle of infrastructure projects.
Presented by members of the ISC’s Modern Slavery Coalition, with special guest Lucy Forbes from the Office of the NSW Anti-Slavery Commissioner.
The ISC Modern Slavery Coalition is actively calling for new members to join, learn, share and make a difference!
| one of the most important things to make the due diligence effectvly happen in the supply chain mapping process is accesabilty to data and veryfiying those data. this could be a great challnege. any advice to cope with challenge? | One of the most important things is to make sure that Due Diligence is ongoing. Continuously mapping your supply chain and using various resources, whether that is contractual reporting by your suppliers, seeking out industry groups to help map the parts of your supply chain, tracking invoices or materials qty ins and outs from manufacturers in the supply chain. Hope some of those tips help. |
| one of the most important things to make the due diligence effectvly happen in the supply chain mapping process is accesabilty to data and veryfiying those data. this could be a great challnege. any advice to cope with challenge? | In addition to the data, it can also be helpful to look atr opportunities to engage directly with specific higher risk suppliers, such as a supplier deep dive to look at sourcing of a particular product. This can help add a qualitative lens to the quantitative data |
| As a small business (non-reporting) can I please have some advice for how we can best respond to our customers’ questions about our supply chains? Imagine a business with under 15 staff having to answer these deep and detailed questions where we might not know or have the ability to get such information. How do you get this information from smaller and smaller suppliers or overseas suppliers? Are there other sources to search other than the suppliers themselves? What is the expectation on such small businesses? | The resourcing impact on small suppliers is something that’s very real. Some options to consider could be a standard document you could share with all customers that explains briefly what types of risks you think are relevant to your operations and supply chains, how you manage these risks (ie all your employees are engaged in accordance with Australian law and you have a contract clause prohibiting modern slavery with your suppliers etc). This may help show your customers that you are aware of your risks and seeking to manage them appropriately. Importantly, the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights which underpin the Australian guidance explain that entities’ responses should be proportionate to their size and risk profile – that is a small organisation can’t be expected to manage risks in the same way as a global company. Another option is also to say to a customer that you are open to working with them on a shared deep dive into a particular issue or supplier? |
| With the apparent leading knowledge coming from other countries such as the U.S. , should we consider using the UFLPA list of entities their list of goods on the U.S. CBP website of entities and goods linked to forced labour? | It’s a helpful tool to consider as part of due diligence – both in relation to specific suppliers as well as to help understand general types of goods that are higher risk. As mentioned, there may also be a risk that goods unable to imported into the US are instead imported in other markets, such as Australia. |
| Do we have any insights into the detail of what the Due Diligence obligations will be in the likely updates to the Act? | At the moment it appears that it would be an requirement to have a modern slavery due diligence system in place. Which would mean having in place risk assessment processes, actions to manage those risks, and to track effectiveness. Which mirror what companies should be doing as part of their current modern slavery reporting. It is possible though that Parliament will choose to make this requirement broader. |
| Supply chain engagement requires a lot of resources and admin burden for tiers 2 and 3 – how to encourge participation. This is only for Modern Slavery assessment, but now to reduce carbon emissions the recommendations are to engage with suppliers – which makes it double effort to assess – what do you suggest to reduce admin burden? | Yes, lower supply chain tiers can be challenging. We recommend engaging with Tier 1 suppliers first and trying to get collaboration for them to work with their direct supply chain (your Tier2). Tackling all of your topics listed can be done at the same time to streamline engagement and reduce administration burden. Start with small set of questions to higlight high level risks, and then assess those answers to dive deeper into areas that may raise indicatorsOASC supplementary response: In addition to the points suggested by Sebastian, consider partnering with other agencies that share the same suppliers, or owners of any scheme/s of which the supplier is part. Collecting and sharing information collaboratively across government reduces the burden on both individual agencies / business units and suppliers, as the latter only has to “tell us once”. |
| Some supply chains are very challenging to get visibility over. Once we have better visibility down the tiers of complex supply chains, what is a reasonable measure to take to further investigate potential risks? Where do you stop? | OASC response:
Hi Sara, In general, organizations should focus their due diligence and risk mitigation efforts on the areas of their supply chain where the most serious risks to people exist, even if these risks exist further down a complex supply chain. The scope of “reasonable” actions will, however, vary depending on the organization’s size, capabilities and leverage over its value chain. The nature and extent of these actions will therefore be highly situation-specific. When investigating and addressing risks further down a supply chain, entities should start by building leverage through collaboration with their suppliers or (subject to applicable competition etc. rules) industry partners. Infrastructure organizations can also leverage technology, such as worker voice platforms, to ensure they are engaging impacted stakeholders throughout their supply chains. The focus should be on continuous improvement: building visibility and encouraging better supplier practices over time |
| If I wanted to identify the modern slavery risks in regards to employment and the people directly employed by my organisation, where would you recommend I start? | It’s helpful to think about the cohorts of workers who may be most vulnerable. For example, are there employees or contractors who may be lower skilled in countries where there are higher risk? Are these employees recruited by third parties who may charge recruitment fees? Does everyone employeed have written contracts in a language they understand? Are there any outsourced services or labour hire workers? It can also be helpful to explain why other cohorts of workers may be less vulnerable – for example, skilled white collar professional employees. |
| does Social Value for public benifit coem into this space? if not why hot | Great question Deborah – creating social value for people and communities would potentially reduce the risks of labour abuses and modern slavery through any valued initatives. Its a great positive action to do – however – the UN Guiding Principles state that a companies negative human rights impacts cannot be offset by creating a postiive initiative. |
| how can companies in the infrastructure sector implement effective due diligence processes to identify and mitigate the risks of modern slavery, particularly in relation to sourcing materials and labor? | OASC response:
Hi Paola, The NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner’s Guidance on Reasonable Steps provides a detailed overview of effective due diligence processes across industries. The most important first step for companies is establishing an organizational commitment to identifying and addressing modern slavery through engaging stakeholders, identifying salient risks, creating a modern slavery policy approved by the senior governing body, and developing a risk management plan.
In relation to sourcing raw materials, companies should be aware of well-reported risks in value chains of materials they procure regularly, e.g. brick kilns in Pakistan, timber in Brazil, cobalt in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. They should ensure that questions asked during the tender process allow buyers to obtain sufficient information to assess whether the procurement will contribute to risks of harm to people.
In relation to labour, companies should can manage risks by: – Ensuring that any tender price is consistent with the tenderer offering workers a living wage; – Ensuring that any labour hire companies and recruiters are adequately regulated / supervised; – Avoiding short turnaround times on orders, or long payment times to suppliers – Ensuring that supply-chain workforces are aware of their rights, including re: fair pay and association – Ensuring that effective worker voice and grievance mechanisms are in place. |
| I guess that at the moment of engaging a new supplier/contractor on a project, the qualification process is a key procss to lower the risk of engaging companies invilved in modern slavery? | Qualification and contracting is typically the point of greatest leverage. So thinking about using modern slavery tender clauses or having other engagement with suppliers at this point is really key. |
| I am listening from WA. My organisation has recently established a sustainability/Modern Slavery working group to plan for the potential upcoming amendments to the Cth Act. We are not at the current reporthing threshold but are planning for an amendment where we will be. We commenced with a review of a solutions system Moody’s Analytics but are struggling to find any other solutions. What are your recommendations for assistance in system solutions to assist in due dilligence and risk management on supply chain, other agencies in WA that can assist in design of sustainability/MS solutions, and where we can find general assistance in WA to assist medium sized businesses to bring onboard solutions for best practice in this area. | Hi Leisha – that’s great to hear. Tech solutions are important but also don’t underestimate what you can do internally as well. The WA Small Business Commissioner might be a helpful first port of call? Walk Free is also an NGO based in Perth. And also happy to chat afterwards about some of the stakeholders in WA you could contact – my email is alexander.coward@pillar-two.com |
| Let’s say Victoria gets an anti-slavery commissioner office, will the whole of Vic government be viewed as one body and therefore required to report on this/follow reasonable steps guidance? or would this be department to department? | OASC response:
Hi Anila, The NSW Act requires individual due diligence and reporting by any ‘government agency’ – i.e., departments, councils, and other public and local authorities.
If modern slavery reporting and due diligence measures are introduced in Victoria, whether they require individual or whole-of-government DD and reporting will depend on the way the law is drafted. However, it is – on balance – probably more likely that they would follow the NSW model of entity-level reporting. |
| Is there any proper monitoring or oversight mechanism in place to assure the legal obligations by public entities are met accordingly? | OASC response:
Hi Amin, In relation to the NSW Act, the NSW Anti-slavery Commissioner has the power to name non-compliant entities on a public register. The NSW Auditor-General may also conduct a modern slavery audit of a government agency under s 38G of the Government Sector Audit Act 1983.
Under the federal regime, section 16A of the Cth Modern Slavery Act 2018 provides for non compliant entities to be named on a public register if they have failed to comply with / respond to requests to remedy non-conforming statements. |
| Is there a way of being notified when the discussion paper is released this year? | OASC response:
Hi Kate, Yes – please sign up for our OASC Due Diligence News & Resources mailing list here: http://eepurl.com/iKztqs |
| Are there private organizations or businesses that specialize in investigating organisations’ supply chains for modern slavery risks? If yes, is there collaboration and information-sharing among stakeholders to help enhance the effectiveness of efforts to eradicate modern slavery from global supply chains? | OASC response:
Hi Rajaei, There are a range of organizations that provide social audits, worker voice mechanisms, or certification. One good example is the Cleaning Accountability Framework, which works with cleaners, worker representatives, tenants, contractors, property owners, facility managers, and investors across the cleaning supply chain to promote decent work, ethical procurement and best practice |
| Thanks a lot Lucy. Would you be preparing code of practice for construction as well? Would that be possible to provide links and information about Spend Cube Categories how to reach out this source as the risk assesment is based on this information in which many sub departments in the organisations do not have involvement or visibility to this? No information available at ASC’s page. That would be so helpful. Are the both versions of Tender Clauses mandatory to use? Are you planning any upcoming sessions with organisations before May to ask the questions related to GRS? | OASC response:
Hi Seda, The renewables Code of Practice is the only code currently under development, although further codes will be developed in future in line with sector needs, identified areas of risk to people, and OASC resources. The IRIT, the Guidance on Reasonable Steps and other resources are available on our website here: https://dcj.nsw.gov.au/legal-and-justice/our-commissioners/anti-slavery-commissioner/due-diligence-and-reporting.html The Heightened version of the Model Tender Clauses should be used for procurements that are associated with high modern slavery risks. The Streamlined version can be used as a resource for other procurements. Both the Heightened and Streamlined versions of the tender clause are designed to be adapted in line with the specific procurement and other tender documents. If you have specific queries about the IRIT, MTCs or Guidance, we would be delighted to speak further with you. Please reach out to us at GRS@dcj.nsw.gov.au |
Just 12% of Australia’s construction workforce is female, which means we are missing out on talent at a time we need it most. The reasons why women aren’t choosing careers in construction are well documented and span everything from recruitment practices to lack of role models to unconscious bias. Meanwhile, Australia’s construction sector is responsible for a supersized carbon footprint, generating around 18% of the nations emissions, as well as 16% of our waste.
Diversity and sustainability are enormous challenges for the construction industry. But we can tackle them together. This series, developed by the Infrastructure Sustainability Council with the support of the NSW Government, spotlights stories of female sustainability leadership. By sharing stories that lay bare the obstacles and outline the opportunities, we hope to give more Australian construction businesses the insights and impetus to grow their workforce of female sustainability specialists.
As Sustainability Project Manager on the Sydney Central Station Metro project, Alyssa Slaney has helped to transform Australia’s busiest transport hub into a sustainability showstopper.
In 2023 Alyssa was named ‘Emerging Leader’ at the 2023 Infrastructure Sustainability Council Awards for her work at Sydney Central Station Metro, and as a role model and mentor to younger women.
But Alyssa’s career as a sustainability champion in construction was serendipitous, rather than strategic.
Alyssa began her science degree with the idea that she’d spend her days “catching small animals and surveying bushland”. While she relished her studies – which culminated in a Bachelor of Science in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from the University of Melbourne – she couldn’t see herself in a research role.
“My boyfriend’s dad was in the construction industry and offered me a role setting up IT gear and preparing documentation while I made up my mind what to do,” Alyssa says. He made introductions and helped her establish connections, which led to an environmental graduate role.
“I had never considered construction up until that point. ‘How does the construction industry work and what would my role in construction entail? Surely I don’t have the skills for that kind of industry,’ I thought. Not true! The first thing is knowing that it exists as an option, and that it includes so many roles and career pathways.”
Alyssa grew up with boys, and joining a male-dominated industry wasn’t daunting. But when she started on site, in Alyssa’s own words: “I stood out, at the time there was only a couple of women on site. But I chose to use that as an opportunity to connect with people and get things done. It was a little difficult to join conversations at times. I think it would have helped if I watched more sport!”
The most basic barrier to inclusion can be the quality of bathroom facilities. “Every project should ensure they have accessible women’s bathrooms and facilities. It seems like a no-brainer, but this is not a given on all projects.”
Personal protective equipment is another subtle symbol of exclusion. “When I started, PPE was either for men and way too big and the wrong shape, or you got pink or purple boots rather than the normal brown. If your workplace doesn’t have the right stuff for you, ask for it. If that doesn’t work, source it yourself and get reimbursed.”
One of the biggest takeaways from Alyssa’s experience is to rethink safety. “Safety is everyone’s responsibility and if you feel uncomfortable, or if a process isn’t being followed it’s important to identify what is going on and speak up. As an individual you will have a unique perspective and if you see an improvement opportunity that others haven’t, it could have a great flow on effect for yourself and others.”
A more insidious challenge is unconscious bias that can entrench gendered stereotypes. Alyssa says she continues to grapple with “the balance of being ‘bossy’ – which is just ‘getting it done’ – versus being ‘ineffective’, which is ‘being friendly and a team player’.” This remains a work in progress.
There have also been times during her career when Alyssa has worried whether her values and career choice are in step. One memory that remains with her was of a “gigantic gum tree” be felled to make way for a wider road.
“This tree was a thing of beauty. I watched as the team pulled up a machine next to it and pushed it over. My heart broke. On the outside I was trying to be calm, but I was probably in shock. I thought: ‘Construction must not be for me.’ This played in my mind until one of the engineering graduates flipped it for me. It’s because construction has a large environment impact that I should stay, and that industry needs people like me to make it better.”
Alyssa has undoubtedly made a profound personal and professional impact. She has contributed to a swag of sustainability ratings on the Central Station Metro project, notably an IS Design Leading Rating, working towards a Leading Rating for IS As Built Rating and a world-leading 6 Star Green Star Design Review rating.
As a change agent, Alyssa also developed a sustainability training module for people working on the Central Station Metro project. More than 5,800 people learnt about the impact of climate change, the importance of sustainability ratings and the roles we all play to contribute to climate positive pathways.
Alyssa is a construction ambassador, sharing the positive story of sustainable construction to young women. “I don’t remember seeing any job offers or information booths for construction while I was studying science,” she notes. To address this, she has presented sustainability modules to young women considering studying STEM, through Laing O’Rourke’s industry-leading Inspiring STEM+ programme, mentored peers and supported undergraduates to set sustainability-oriented career goals.
Alyssa Slaney, Laing O’Rourke
