In 2019 when the Federal Government gave approval for women to work night shifts, APM Terminals Apapa, Nigeria’s largest container terminal by volume, began to create opportunities for women in its largely male-dominated operations.
Starting with the employment of female crane operators that same year, the company has gone on to introduce more gender-friendly policies as regards its female employees.
Now, women are found in previously male-dominated roles such as the planning department and banksmen. With this year’s theme for International Women’s Day focusing on ‘Equity for All,’ female employees across the three APM Terminals facilities in Nigeria took turns to review the company’s contributions towards gender balance.
One such area is encouraging women to not only aspire for leadership positions but to also undergo specific training programmes designed to position them to take roles in leadership and management. Already, at the terminal and national levels, APM Terminals has six women in the management team.
“In APM Terminals Nigeria, we not only give equal opportunities to both genders but also go the extra mile to encourage female participation in some of the fields and roles where there is limited participation of females,” said Uzoma Ngozi Ben-Ude, the senior human resource business partner at APM Terminals Nigeria.
According to her, APM Terminals Nigeria ensures there is female representation in the leadership cadre of the organisation and also creates an enabling environment for them to succeed in their roles.
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In order not to confuse equality with equity, APM Terminals makes a very clear distinction between the two.
Differentiating the two, Chinenye Miriam Deinde, general manager, Legal and Corporate Affairs at APM Terminals Nigeria, described as positive, the shift in the International Women’s Day theme from equality to equity.
She said equality means to share resources for people equally irrespective of their specific needs while equity means apportioning resources to persons according to their specific needs in such a way as to level the playing field.
“Women want to see employers looking beyond absolute values and determining what support each employee needs. Women for example may need additional support to be at par with their male colleagues,” Deinde said.
The company also shows additional support to women through programmes such as the APM Terminals Strategies for Success (SFS), a training programme specifically designed to position women in the junior cadre and middle management level, for leadership positions.
For Goodhope Rowland, RTG Operator at APM Terminals/West African Container Terminals Onne, the IWD theme resonates with her more on a personal level.
“I always look forward to the theme that comes with the IWD celebration. On a personal level, it’s usually an opportunity to get curious and learn something new. This year’s theme resonates a lot with me because it reminds me of not just the opportunity that I have been given to play in a unique space, but also the privilege of being well-equipped to function and succeed in that space, regardless of the social definition of concepts such as gender.
“That is what embracing equity means, it’s about fairness, giving people equal access to opportunities, dismantling, and strategically addressing systemic oppression and inequalities that potentially stall the progress of any kind. Inequalities could be racism, gender discrimination and more, but in the context of the IWD celebration, it’s all about gender gaps and differences in the workplace,” she added.
One cannot speak of equity without inclusion. Enabling employees to feel comfortable and confident in themselves, helps them to work in a way that allows them to deliver the business needs of the company.
Adaeze Ojukwu, customer service officer of APM Terminals/WACT, said that the terminal and shipping business is a male-dominated space, with unimaginable opportunities for women.
“As part of its strategy of becoming a Safer, Better and Bigger Terminal, APM Terminals has been on a journey of enabling a highly diverse and inclusive workplace, actively enhancing more female involvement in the business, and ensuring everyone is given a fair chance to succeed in any capacity, taking into cognizance the differences and individual needs of each woman,” she explained.
Ojukwu added that in her time with APM Terminals, the company effortlessly aided female employees to realise their full potential while allowing for introspection on how to become better.
This, she said, has expectedly led to an increase in the number of female employees with a remarkable presence in roles that previously enjoyed only male presence.
“In APM Terminals Nigeria, women are also stamping their presence in leadership positions, where, along with their male counterparts, they are held accountable for progress in diversity and inclusion agenda, demonstrating APM Terminals’ commitment to the cause,” she said.
Making gender-friendly policies and enabling equity in the work environment are not without their challenges and pitfalls. As with all positive ideas and policies, there is always the human element to look out for.
Ben-Ude captured this fact aptly. She said biases and stereotypes always come in the way of having a truly diverse work environment.
According to her, there are stereotypes about roles that should be done by men and women and sometimes people are not open to the possibility of having the female gender in certain roles and levels of responsibility within the organisation.
“In addition, people perceive creating an enabling environment for women as creating double standards and as such might not welcome the opportunity for inclusion. We therefore can lose the huge benefit of having a diverse workforce where everyone is contributing from different perspectives and the performance of the organisation is enhanced,” Ben-Ude said.
To counter this human element, Deinde pointed out the need for all leaders to be conscious of their individual biases.
“Bias is a big issue because it is unconscious. As an employer and a leader, you may not be aware that you have this bias. So, we need to ask ourselves what unconscious biases we have. It is important to shine the torchlight on these unconscious biases by confronting ourselves honestly if we are to make fair decisions,” she said.
To ensure inclusivity, APM Terminals focuses on gender equity and inclusion right from the point of recruitment through the employee life cycle. Employees are mandated to undergo Diversity, Equality and Inclusion training to create awareness about unconscious biases and how they can stifle equity in the workplace.
Ben-Ude added: “We ensure that we demonstrate a duty of care towards our female employees by creating female gender-sensitive policies and environment to ensure they can perform at their best. We also provide a good health care system and have family support programmes.”
Meanwhile, Fatima Yakubu Aliyu, customer service officer of APM Terminals Kano, throws more light on some of the gender-friendly policies, describing them as encouraging female employees to aspire further.
“At the time I joined APM Terminals a few years ago, the HR Manager was a lady. I was impressed; it was encouraging to know that I could also aspire to get to the management position. The company has a great maternity programme; four months of paid leave and a six-month back-to-work programme that allows you to resume later and close earlier than normal work hours. This way, it makes adjustment back to work after maternity easier on the women,” she said.
Though APM Terminals is of the view that there is still much to be done in ensuring workplace equity and closing the gender gap, it, however, believes that the first steps begin with acknowledging the loopholes and having the courage to make the necessary changes.
