Diversity and Inclusion

Laing O’Rourke is committed to attracting and developing the most talented people regardless of their race, sexual orientation, religion, age and gender or disability status. We continually strive to build a workplace that seeks out and values different perspectives and where all employees and stakeholders feel respected and that their opinion is valued. We promote a culture that embraces unique perspectives and where opportunities are realised based on skills and competence not race, gender or other preferences.

Laing O’Rourke has set a target to ensure the number of men and women employed in its international staff are equal by 2033, with additional gender-focused initiatives to be set out to improve representation among frontline construction workers. Setting this ambitious target for gender balance is a significant step in the process to deliver overdue change in a sector that continues to lack diversity.

Other mechanisms that have proven to increase female participation in the business include specific recruitment strategies targeting women, a referral bonus scheme, sponsorship of emerging female leaders and mandatory inclusivity training for senior and hiring managers.

The company is developing plans to increase the representation of people from different groups, and will continue its work to transform the inclusivity and sustainability of construction careers by:

• Investing in its Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) led operating model and the upskilling of its people to make Laing O’Rourke an employer of choice for more people
• Offering our people an industry leading aid parental leave policy
• Encouraging more women into construction through our Inspiring STEM+ school partnership programme
• Providing its people with more dynamic and flexible working options
• Implementing its wellbeing strategy across the business to protect people from occupational ill health, including implementation of wellbeing lessons learned during the Covid-19 pandemic
• Linking gender and cultural diversity outcomes to the success metrics of projects

Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP)

At Laing O’Rourke Australia we accept the challenges and opportunities of Reconciliation and the work required. Our Stretch Reconciliation Action plan provides clear direction and a delivery plan for our teams, as it includes our key deliverables, targets, initiatives and actions that we will integrate with the way we work.

Gender Equality Action Plan

Over the last ten years we have implemented policies and interventions to attract more women into our business, and to keep them. In 2018, our Australian business developed and implemented a Gender Diversity Action Plan calling out specific actions and initiatives to increase the pipeline of women in project leadership roles. 

Since then, we have continued to push the boundaries, setting ambitious targets to achieve gender parity across our global staff by 2033. Our Gender Equality Action Plan, launched in 2024, sets out how we will achieve our market leading gender parity targets, through courageous change, honest conversations and building capability.

Gender Pay Gap

Every year the Australian business reports its Gender Pay Gap to the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA).

For the statement published in February 2025, click here. 

For the statement published in February 2026, click here.