Diversity and inclusion

Diversity and inclusion strategy

We have implemented a broad range of initiatives to promote gender equality including key targets in the areas of inclusive leadership, flexibility, talent, and pay equity.

Inclusive leadership: Senior leaders are required to participate in inclusive leadership programs to openly promote active participation in building a diverse and inclusive workforce and challenging systems that hinder an inclusive environment. Ultimately, we aim to create a workplace where everyone feels safe to be themselves and express their point of view.

Flexibility: Flexibility is an important factor in today's working environment. Delivering great client service doesn’t have to be compromised by when and where people work. We know that leading a balanced life leads to happier, healthier people and clients. We offer fully flexible work practices with no mandated number of days in the office and we invest in smart, supportive technologies, which facilitate hybrid working for everyone.

Talent: We are committed to identifying a pipeline of diverse talent and establishing programs for mentoring and leadership development. We regularly review everything including recruitment, learning and development, and promotion pipelines to ensure gender equity.

Pay equity: Rigorous gender pay gap analysis is conducted each year to measure pay equity. We removed pay secrecy clauses from our employment contracts in 2019, and have set specific action plans to monitor our progress in maintaining pay equity.

Diversity and inclusion policy

Lander & Rogers is committed to building a workforce that represents the diversity of the clients and communities we support, with equal opportunity for all our people. We believe an inclusive workplace, where everyone feels valued and can reach their full potential, is a critical part of our success. Lander & Rogers' Diversity & Inclusion Policy outlines our commitment to promoting and embedding diversity, equality, respect and inclusion principles throughout our firm. View the Diversity and Inclusion Policy.

Intersectionality

In building workplace inclusion, we are acutely aware of the need to address intersectional barriers, where a person’s identity may expose them to overlapping forms of discrimination and marginalisation. Such barriers may exist for example, across gender, culture, class, sexual orientation or disability.

Gender and sexuality: We are committed to representing the diverse needs of our people, clients and community members who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer and asexual, and their families and supporters.

We have partnered with Pride in Diversity to enhance our knowledge of inclusive practices and practical strategies to improve the experiences of people with diverse gender and/or sexuality.

Landers Pride: To help drive a culture that is both inclusive and representative of our diverse communities, Lander & Rogers' LGBTIQA+ advisory group, Landers Pride, was formed.

The group's primary purpose is to provide consultation and support on the firm's goal to create a more inclusive environment for LGBTIQA+ people, clients and communities.

The group acts to increase awareness regarding matters impacting LGBT+ inclusion including workplace policy inclusiveness; training and resources to foster understanding, empathy and respectful conversations; guidance on pronouns and inclusive language, and key issues and events.

Supporting people with disabilities: We support Australian Disability Enterprises (ADEs) and promote equal opportunity through:

• recruitment and learning and development policies (including training on unconscious bias) that address barriers and biases that inhibit the employment of people in disadvantaged groups, such as people with disabilities
• offering flexible work practices for staff with a disability or caring for those with a disability
• implementation of our values and culture statement, which promotes acceptance of differences and diversity.

Gender equality

We are proud that in 2023 we achieved gender equity in our partnership and that half of our practice groups are led or co-led by women.

Since 2020, Lander & Rogers has been named an Employer of Choice for Gender Equality by the Federal Government’s Workplace Gender Equality Agency. This recognises our initiatives to promote gender equality through pay equity, flexible work practices and tools, gender neutral parental leave policies and the equal opportunity for women to be promoted to positions of leadership. As citation holders, we actively advocate for a more gender-balanced world, where we can celebrate inclusion, raise awareness against bias, and act for equality.

"We want to create a culture where senior leaders don’t look at gender equality as a women's issue, but a business issue and a fairness issue — essential for economies and communities to thrive, and enabling everyone, regardless of their gender, to share equally in the opportunities the world has to offer." – Genevieve Collins, Chief Executive Partner.

Gender pay gap

Under the Workplace Gender Equality Amendment (Closing the Gender Pay Gap) Act 2023, organisations with 100 or more employees are required to disclose their gender composition and remuneration information.

View our Employer Statement here to learn about the actions Lander & Rogers is taking to continue to reduce our pay gap and achieve parity for a gender equal workplace.

A culture of inclusiveness

At Lander & Rogers we believe it's critical to take a holistic approach to inclusion, beginning with our culture.

Targeted policies, initiatives, and education are essential, but the starting point must be in creating and maintaining a fundamental culture of inclusiveness for all people.

“Taking a holistic approach to gender equality starts with an honest assessment of organisational culture. To achieve meaningful and sustainable progress, it is necessary to be thoughtful about all decision-making, and support progress with targeted policies, initiatives and education. This requires vigilance about participation, unintended consequences and unhelpful backlash, ensuring equal access to all opportunities irrespective of gender.” Genevieve Collins, Chief Executive Partner

Examples of initiatives, policies and programs to foster inclusion at Lander & Rogers include:

• fully flexible work practices with no number of mandated days in the office
• smart, supportive technologies that facilitate hybrid working
• equal numbers of women participants in leadership and promotion programs
• easy access to formal job-share and job-pair arrangements for those working less than fulltime
• client initiatives and social events held on different days and times to encourage participation from those working part time or with flexible work requirements
• removal of pay secrecy requirements from employment contracts
• generous gender-neutral parental leave policy, with 26 weeks of paid parental leave and superannuation paid for additional unpaid leave
• extended period for accessing paid parental leave to 18 months, encouraging fathers to take the leave after the first 12 months typically taken by mothers
• public holiday swap allowances that respect people's differing religious and cultural traditions
• support for new parents transitioning back to work, including three months of budget relief and tailored coaching programs through Grace Papers
• regular gender pay gap analysis to measure inequity and ensure real change has been achieved
• industry-leading sexual harassment policy with a 'no bystanders' rule and mandatory reporting requirements, and a 'personal relationships' policy to prevent conflicts
• A workplace respect policy that stamps out any form of inappropriate workplace behaviour, including unlawful discrimination, sexual harassment, vilification, victimisation and bullying
• a gender-neutral dress-for-your-day policy, supporting an inclusive approach to how we turn up to work each day.

Gender equality accreditations

• WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality 2023-2025
• Signatory to the Law Council of Australia's Equitable Briefing Policy
• Signatory to the Law Society of NSW's Charter for the Advancement of Women
• Signatory to the Law Institute of Victoria's Charter for the Advancement of Women.

Awards and recognition

• Winner, Outstanding Law Firm/Legal Practice of the Year | 2023 Women Lawyers Association of NSW
• Winner, Diversity Law Firm of the Year | 2022 Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards
• Employer of Choice | 2022 Australasian Lawyer annual ranking of top legal employees
• Top 25 Attraction Firms | 2022 Ranked #8 most attractive firm and #3 most attractive firm for women by Lawyers Weekly readers
• Finalist, Diversity Law Firm of the Year | 2021 Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards
• Employer of Choice | 2021 Australasian Lawyer annual ranking of top legal employees
• Winner, Diversity Law Firm of the Year | 2020 Lawyers Weekly Women in Law Awards
• Employer of Choice | 2020 Australasian Lawyer annual ranking of top legal employees
• Excellence Award - Law Firm of the Year (101-500 lawyers) | 2020 Australasian Law Awards.