Over our fifty-plus years in security, we have come to realise that talent and ability come in many colours and creeds and all genders and sexualities. At Provincial, we aim to look past the surface and into the hearts and minds of the people who work with us. We see the ability in disability, we explore the values that every culture can bring to our offering, and we harness our teams’ unique perspectives.
Our Core Values - Duty of Care, Respect, Belonging and Our Voice - underpin Provincial’s desire to improve, evolve and to become the best that we can be.
Our Journey
Since 2022, Provincial has been a part of the Irish Centre for Diversity and Inclusion’s Award Scheme. When we were first assessed, we earned a Bronze Award for our work in Diversity and Inclusion. Throughout the following year, we worked hard to bring our status up to Silver. We are now striving for Gold and hope to be the first in our industry to receive such a worthy accolade.
Gender Diversity in Security
With that goal in mind, we are currently working on policy documents around working mothers, breastfeeding, menopause as well as gender identification and expression. In an industry that has historically relied so much on heterosexual men, Provincial can boast a female workforce of over 25% with more women than men both in top-level management and, on the ground, working as site managers and deputy site managers. This compares very favourably with a recently quoted industry average of 8%. While we are proud to lead the charge on gender diversity in security, we strive to do more in not just developing women in security but changing the culture around it.
Seeing the Ability in the Disability
In 2019, Provincial teamed up with the Blue Diamond Drama Academy to give people with intellectual disabilities the opportunity to become part of our team. We have learnt so much since then and the feedback of those involved has helped us shape their roles and allowed us to tailor our training to their needs. This has allowed us to deliver that training in tandem with their colleagues and is another positive step on our path to inclusion. Since we started the programme, five members of the academy with varying intellectual disabilities have been offered roles with two of our major international clients. This has changed lives and has shattered pre-conceptions of what disability means for both those now in the roles and those who took them on. Last year, the hard work of our team and those involved in the programme was recognised with a nomination in the Outstanding Diversity Initiative Award from the Irish Centre for Diversity.
Working with our Neighbours
We work with Career Leap, a programme based in North Inner City Dublin that encourages its young residents to work with international corporations who have become their neighbours. One of the unique aspects of Career Leap is their mentor programme where business partners are invited to nominate members of staff to participate in a practical CPD course which, among other things, introduces the Career LEAP model, explores educational and linguistic disadvantage and examines the principles of mentoring, with specific focus on mentoring people from diverse backgrounds. Ten members of our staff have successfully completed their course and have received their CPD Certificate of Participation from Trinity College. This training has given our mentors a solid grounding and has been key to the successful on-boarding of three young programme participants into full-time employment. We look forward to welcoming more.
A Resource for Employees
Provincial employ people from more than thirty countries around the world. Through our Employee Resource Group (ERG) we encourage them to have their say and give their input to our company policies. The ERG gives employees from our various sites a platform to contribute and network within Provincial and offers them the chance to develop leadership skills along the way. We believe in tolerance, diversity, openness and inclusion and every day at Provincial, we strive to ensure we foster a work environment where everyone feels respected, equal, and valued.
