Disability

Our approach

We ensure our workplace welcomes, supports and celebrates the unique contributions of all our people. We also aim to ensure that our products and services are inclusive and accessible to everyone. Under the framework of our Disability Action Plan (DAP), we provide a range of resources and programs to support staff with disability, their line managers, and other staff who need disability resources.

Employment opportunities can also be promoted through our business relationships. For example, in our supply chain, we encourage suppliers to employ and support the needs of people with disability.

2010-12 Disability Action Plan

Our third Disability Action Plan reaffirms our long-term commitment to making ANZ a place that welcomes and supports customers and staff with disability.

Together with Group-wide targets to employ more people with disability, we are boosting information and services to encourage greater awareness and understanding of disability, mental health and wellbeing so we can better support our staff and customers.

The Disability Action Plan:

  • responds to the Australian Government’s National Mental Health and Disability Employment Strategy and represents our ongoing commitment as a leading bank operating in Australia, and many other countries to support people with disability - our employees, customers and the community
  • has undergone extensive consultations with staff, customers, and regulatory and industry bodies
  • focuses on five key commitments and includes a strategic leadership, business relevance and innovative actions as a core differentiator. These commitments are:
    • to ensure our products and services take into account the needs of people with disability
    • to ensure our branch network and all ANZ workplaces are accessible and support our customers and staff with disability
    • to continue to tap into this talent pool by globally employing an additional 35 people with disability
    • to take the lead in championing and promoting contributions of people with disability both externally and internally
    • to have a strong governance framework to ensure alignment with our strategic direction.

The plan is overseen by the Steering Committee, which comprises a group of senior leaders who have responsibility and accountability for the implementation of the plan, and is chaired by the General Manager for Australian Operations.

Staff engagement and support

A number of our staff voluntarily participate in our Abilities Network, which is managed centrally from our Melbourne headquarters but is available for all ANZ staff across our region. The network aims to foster inclusiveness and diversity, raise awareness of disability and accessibility, and represent staff on issues relating to disability.

The Abilities Network was instrumental in the development and publication of ANZ’s Global Technology Accessibility Policy, which aims to ensure that all ANZ technical products and services, including web platforms, take account of individuals who may be affected by visual, auditory, physical, speech, cognitive or neurological disabilities.

ANZ employees with disability also have access to specialised technology assistance through the Technology Accessibility Helpline, which provides assistance in resolving technology accessibility issues.

Skilled mentoring opportunities are available in Melbourne with the Willing and Able Mentoring (WAM) program, run by the ANZ Risk team. WAM matches job seekers or tertiary students who have a disability with a mentor in leading organisations in the job seeker’s field of interest. Additionally, employees are invited to participate in our internal mentor/buddying program, which is facilitated through our Abilities Network.

Case study: Disability advocates in our super region

Reena Gunanand is a Senior Officer in ANZ’s Human Resources Support Services team based in Bangalore, India. Reena is also one of the winners of the 2010 ANZ Abilities Star Awards, which recognise people who have supported colleagues and customers with disabilities or helped raise awareness about the issues facing people with disability.

Reena received the Star Award for Outstanding Advocacy for her persistence in increasing awareness among peers and encouraging her team to build a database of 124 resumés of potential employees as targets for recruitment.

Reena says that this award recognises the attitude a person takes, just as much as the particular activities they do:

"I wanted to be a part of an initiative which enabled differently abled individuals the opportunity to realise their potential. With a focused effort we have recruited four individuals into roles at ANZ Bangalore this year alone. This has been possible by encouraging fellow recruiters as well as line managers to include differently abled candidates as a part of the potential talent pool.

“I am proud to be an ANZ employee and part of a movement which further brings our business values to life, and recognises that every individual should be given the opportunity to succeed."

 

2011 results

Progress against the current Disability Action Plan

Customers and community

This year our staff with disability are sharing their knowledge and unique insights to help us develop products and services which create a better banking experience for customers with disability. Our award-winning mobile banking application for the iPhone, ANZ goMoney™ was designed to make it easy for people with vision impairment to use, thanks to the input and advice provided by a vision impaired staff member who was part of the project development team. This approach is now being extended to other product and service developments, including planned updates to internet banking.

  • Close to 2,700 ATMs in Australia are now equipped with an audio-enabling feature and all new ATMs also support wheelchair access with low screens and keypad access.
  • We are making progress with improving the accessibility of our intranet, anz.com and internet banking. ANZ is now complaint with Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 1.0 standards and we are working towards 2.0 standards.
  • In development, is a system on anz.com that enables staff and customers to quickly access accessibility information about our ATMs, branches, products and services.  
  • Additionally, we developed a partnership with Vision Australia to provide micro-loans to assist people to purchase assistive technology like ‘JAWS screen reading software’ as part of our Progress Loans program.
  • Read more about some of our most recent activity to improve accessibility to our products and services for people with disability

Employees

  • We have exceeded our target, recruiting 39 people with disability into our business (28 in Australia; 4 in New Zealand and 7 in India). This is against a target of 35 people. The retention rate for employees recruited from 2009-2011 is above 95%.
  • Eight senior leaders have been matched as business mentors with students with disability from Deakin University.
  • All new employees with disability were offered mentor/buddies upon commencement at ANZ with 16 matched with volunteers for the program.This year our Abilities Network organised a ‘wheelchair workshop’ for our ATM team to help demonstrate some of the challenges people in wheelchairs face in accessing ATMs. The workshop helped to highlight the importance of having accessible products and services for all customers.
  • Our dedicated internal Technology Accessibility helpline and email inbox continues to provide support to people with disability experiencing difficulty with Technology within the bank.

The future

Our goal over the coming year is to provide 230 positions through our traineeships, graduate program and permanent employment to people from disadvantaged backgrounds, including Indigenous Australians, Maori, people with disability and refugees; and support their advancement through mentoring and cultural awareness programs amongst all employees.

We will also continue to improve the support services provided to customers and staff with disability in our premises, products and services, and play a strong advocacy role for people with disability, promoting this through our supply base, and raising awareness of and support for disability more broadly.

2010 results

Progress against the current Disability Action Plan

Customers and community

  • Close to 3000 ATMs in Australia are now equipped with an audio-enabling feature and all new ATMs also support wheelchair access with low screens and keypad access.
  • An accessibility checklist has been added to the retail product development process to ensure products and services are continually improved with accessibility in mind.
  • Our centralised customer complaints system now has an accessibility category which will enable us to identify and address systemic issues impacting customers.
  • We are making progress with improving the accessibility of our intranet, anz.com and internet banking. ANZ is now complaint with WC3 1.0 standards and we are working towards WC3 2.0 standards.
  • In development, is a system on anz.com that enables staff and customers to quickly access accessiblility information about our ATMs, branches, products and services.
  • We are in the process of updating our sourcing criteria to encourage and develop relationships with businesses that employ and support people with disability.

Employees

  • Over the year we have recruited 38 people with disability across our region, and we have now appointed a dedicated recruiter to support the hiring and onboarding of people with disability. Our disability recruitment target for 2010/2011 is 35 people.
  • In Technology there is now a role that is dedicated to embedding accessibility into our business-as-usual support services. This includes providing an accessibility option to our technology helpdesk that will assist new staff with technology accessibility requirements. A Technology Accessibility Helpline is also available.
  • A ‘Reasonable Accommodation’ kit is available on our intranet ‘Max’, and provides managers with information to help them support their staff who have a disability to work effectively.
  • We also now have a centrally managed process to address disability related queries from staff. Staff can email diversity@anz.com and their queries will be addressed.
  • Mental health awareness and support programs have been a feature in Australia for some time and have now been launched in India and Asia Pacific.

The future

Our goal is to employ an additional 35 people with disability across ANZ’s global businesses and achieve at least a 75% retention rate for our 2009-11 intakes. We have appointed a dedicated resource in our Global Recruitment division to undertake recruitment, ‘onboarding’ and provide ongoing support to staff with disability. Our target will also be supported with the establishment of a Toastmasters public speaking group for all abilities to assist with building confidence and disability awareness.

We will also continue to improve the support services provided to customers and staff with disability in our premises, products and services, and play a strong advocacy role for people with disability, promoting this through our supply base, and raising awareness of and support for disability more broadly.

2009 results

ANZ's Disability Action Plan, launched in September 2007, continued to provide our strategic direction for increased support and inclusion for customers, staff and other community members with disabilities. This includes the provision of our accessibility services customer hotline by calling 1800 ANZ DAP (1800 269 327).

This year we piloted partnerships with specialist employment agencies to identify potential employees with disability to join ANZ. While we achieved our target to employ an additional 35 people with disability this year, the pilot identified several potential improvements that will be the focus of future action.

The future

Through our pilot partnership with specialist employment agencies and our first hand experience we have identified improvements that we can make to ANZ's support of employees with a disability. We will provide greater education and support for line managers recruiting people with disability and offer more flexible options for employees who need modifications to their workspace.

Our 2010 Corporate Responsibility goals include a target to recruit a further 35 people with disability across our global business. We also continue to work towards our broader disability targets as part of our Disability Action Plan.

2008 results

In September 2007, ANZ launched its second Disability Action Plan. The Plan outlines ANZ's strategy to increase support and inclusion for customers, staff and other community members with disabilities.

A key achievement since the Plan was introduced has been significant steps towards making information about our products more accessible.

People who have difficulty accessing standard printed material, including customers with a visual impairment can now access nine of our most commonly used product documents in Braille, large print and audio CD format by calling 1800 ANZ DAP (1800 269 327).

The future

We are currently reviewing some of our policies and practices in the area of recruitment. Some of this initial work has enabled us to recruit three graduates with disabilities who will start with us in 2009.

 

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