Faith-based charity Uniting has been recognised at the Australian LGBTQ Inclusion Awards with a 10-year achievement award.
The awards are Australia’s leading annual celebration of LGBTQ workplace inclusion, hosted by health organisation ACON’s Pride Inclusion Programs.
Uniting also won gold service provider of the year in the Health and Wellbeing Index and bronze employer status in the Australian Workplace Equality Index.
The charity was recognised for its efforts in the ageing, disability, homelessness, early learning, and family service sectors.
The annual awards are a rigorous, evidence-based benchmarking tool that assesses workplaces on the impact of their LGBTQ inclusion initiatives.
“Receiving a 10-year award at this ceremony is an acknowledgement of our continued work in maintaining and strengthening our LGBTI advocacy and inclusion for our people,” said executive sponsor Jill Reich.
“Having a diverse and inclusive workplace is beneficial to everybody and reflective of the wider society we live in.
“We are proud to be acknowledged by ACON as a not-for-profit on the forefront of inclusion for both our people and those we serve.”
In addition to being the only faith-based organisation to win both awards, Uniting was the first faith-based organisation in Australia to be recognised as LGBTI-friendly and receive Rainbow Tick accreditation in 2015 for its aged care and corporate services.
The Uniting Church in Australia has been broadly accepting of LGBTQ people over recent decades.
Following debate within the church, it voted in 2003 to allow gay and lesbian people to be ordained as ministers.
The church permitted ministers to bless same-sex civil unions even before marriage equality became law in Australia in 2017.
Other winners of this year’s LGBTQ Inclusion Awards included QBE Insurance, AGL, RMIT University, and J. P. Morgan.
Cathy Grassick of the Australian Federal Police took out the Out Role Model Award for 2020.
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