Queensland Weightlifting Association Management Committee Gender Equality Action Plan
The Queensland Weightlifting Association (QWA) faces extraordinary competition within the sporting landscape that puts an unprecedented premium on knowledge. It’s a fact that women and girls comprise more than half of the general population. The QWA Management committee (MC) is mindful of its need to successfully leverage and draw members from this sector of the population in order to grow and develop.
The QWA MC recognises that it will better connect with all of its stakeholders and the greater weightlifting community when it achieves greater leadership diversity. Great ideas can only arise when a diverse pool of thought is active and present at the table.
Men and women contribute to the QWA in many ways, as athletes, coaches, technical officials, committee officers, administrators, volunteers and supporters. The focus of this plan is for the QWA MC to raise awareness of the importance of gender equality at the leadership level and amongst all current and future affiliated clubs.
Our Constitution supports the appointment of 8 Management Committee members (President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and 4 Ordinary members). At present we have 6 females and 2 males in these positions. To date there has been no formal process for the nomination process, and we plan to address this as one of our planned actions (below).
Planned Actions
- Include a Vison statement which emphasises that everyone is welcome to join the QWA.
- Set QWA MC gender balance targets of 60/40 and 50/50 to be achieved by 2029.
- Establish a Code of Conduct that outlines the behaviour’s expected from each and every QWA MC officer and staff member/s.
- Develop and publicise Position Descriptions for each QWA MC role.
- Develop and publicise criteria for the recruitment of QWA MC officers.
- In accordance with best practice and gender equity undertake an annual QWA MC skills audit which will be used to inform the nomination and appointment of QWA MC officers.
- Actively encourage and support women to join the QWA MC through inspiring women to nominate to join the QWA MC, and utilising the QWA MC capacity to appoint and recruit women to the QWA MC by communicating this to all QWA members in a timely fashion.
- Develop a QWA MC Officer Induction Program to make new officers feel welcome and informed.
- Conduct QWA MC meetings at appropriate times and duration and via flexible face to face or electronic mediums.
- Make changes to the QWA Constitution, where necessary, to facilitate the implementation regarding any one or more of the above actions.
