Fremantle Commercial Diving (FCD) run an award-winning Indigenous Engagement program which recently provided an opportunity for a young indigenous male to obtain full time employment with FCD, where he received training and support to become a fully accredited part 2 commercial diver.

The FCD Indigenous Engagement Program is aimed at equality in the workplace and helping to close the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians.

Development of this program involved consultation with a significant number of stakeholders to identify potential barriers and create a structure and support system to ensure success. The program is innovative in that it is not aimed at offering entry level employment, it is aimed at rapid skills development in a highly specialised field. The point of difference is to invest heavily in training and career development at an early stage to offer the candidate rapid career progression.

After a 6-month recruitment process in partnership with Clontarf Foundation, the trainee started full time work with FCD in January 2017.

During the 4 very successful years employed with FCD he attained full accreditation as a part 2 commercial diver and participated in a variety of diving jobs in different locations across Australia, including multiple BHP mine-sites.

FCD’s Indigenous Engagement Program was recognised by BHP in their Contractor HSE and Community Awards in 2017 for demonstrating incredible leadership and initiative to enhance and contribute to the safety, community, health and environmental outcomes of BHP’s business. The program was also recognised as a finalist in the Australian Water Association Program Innovation Awards October 2017 as an initiative that drives organisational transformative change and improves outcomes for our communities.

In 2021, due to the qualifications and experience the trainee had gained with FCD, he moved into an exciting new employment opportunity in remote train driving for Rio Tinto.  This opportunity is very exciting, and FCD are very proud of this young man. He went from having no formal professional qualifications to being employed in a highly paid and sought-after career with a leading global mining group, effectively completing rapid career progression, which is what the program set out to achieve.

FCD are in the process of creating a new opportunity for another indigenous trainee, with a company goal to replicate the success experienced by our first trainee.