Diversity and Inclusion
It makes us better.
In our culture, everyone matters and we aim to create a safe environment and familiar surroundings which helps us inspire, support and learn from each other. We’re achieving this by continually entering into dialogue with each other about the added value and impact of diversity and inclusion.
You, your current and future colleagues, our partners, suppliers and clients are encouraged to share ideas with us to contribute to diversity and inclusion within our organization. This is not just all talk, of course, as the ideas that emerge are also actually put into practice!
But to be honest, we are not yet where we want to be. We promise to continue working hard on this together every day. So that you and all your current and future colleagues feel at home within our organization and because we believe that diversity and inclusion make us even better as an organization.
You'll find below the initiatives we are working on every day:
Active diversity policy
We have long been a champion of greater diversity and inclusion. We have an active diversity policy and the aim is to achieve a balanced and diverse composition of our staff at all levels. The Port of Rotterdam Authority is convinced that this is necessary to attract the best people. Diversity contributes to the quality of our people, better decision-making and to greater agility and innovation. Therefore, we work to create a safe and open culture where everyone can voice their opinions and have the opportunity to develop their talent.
With every recruitment drive, we aim to increase our diversity. We are working on a balanced representation of all genders in the workplace and in management positions. Additionally, we are committed to attracting more people who have difficulty accessing the labour market, people from different cultural backgrounds, various age groups and members of the LGBTQI+ community.
In certain tenders for support services, such as administrative and facility services, we integrate social return in order to strengthen our social responsibility and contribute to an inclusive society. Every year, we create opportunities for at least fifty interns to develop young talent and offer them valuable work experience. Furthermore, we offer six to eight traineeships every two years to support and guide future leaders in their professional growth. We reserve a minimum of five structural positions for people alienated from labour markets (we will have 15 positions in 2025) so that they can participate in our organization on a long-term basis and develop their skills in a supportive environment. In addition, we offer occasional learning work placements and social work placements, for example for status holders or people who want to return to work after a long illness. We do this to help them reintegrate into labour markets and build a stable foundation for their future. This is how we actively contribute to an inclusive and diverse work environment in which everyone has the opportunity to realize their potential and contribute to the success of our organization.
Diversity Charter
Port of Rotterdam Authority has joined the Charter Diversity in Business (Charter Diversiteit in Bedrijf). By doing so, the Port Authority indicates that it considers diversity and inclusion important and wants to take steps to improve it in the company. To this end, a programme was set up, built on five pillars: commitment, empowerment, communication, recruitment, measurement = knowledge. Activities are being developed in each of these pillars to increase diversity and inclusion on five dimensions: work ability, cultural diversity, gender, age and LHBTI+.