Jamshedpur, Feb 21 (PTI) Twelve trainee crane operators from LGBTQ+ community were onboarded by steel major Tata Steel at its Kalinganagar plant in Odisha last week, a company press release said. With this, Tata steel further expanded its transgender employee base following the initiative by the company"s West Bokaro division, where 14 transgender people were hired as heavy earth moving machinery (HEMM) operators at its mines in December 2021. This step of including the LGBTQ+ community not only aims to break the glass ceiling, but also targets to mainstream transgender people in society, the press release said. Tata Steel’s Diversity and Inclusion initiative aims at curating a workplace where everyone is respected, every voice is heard, and people can bring their authentic selves to work, it said. The onboarding event at Tata Steel Kalinganagar (TSK) was organised on February 17, 2022. Speaking on the occasion, Atrayee Sanyal, Vice President, Human Resource Management, Tata Steel, said “I am pleased to welcome all the members into the Tata Steel family. We will continue with our efforts to drive LGBTQ+ inclusion and build a benchmark workplace. This journey of HR excellence has been extremely rewarding and motivates us to explore new horizons on diversity and inclusion.” The trainees will undergo training for a year before they begin working in the plant as Crane Operators. “The journey of a thousand miles starts with one step and this step in our endeavour to make a more diverse and inclusive workplace here sets an important milestone. As an equal opportunity employer, Tata Steel respects uniqueness of individuals and is putting its best foot forward to shape the workspace of tomorrow,” said Rajiv Kumar, Vice-President (Operations), TSK. The Company has taken several path-breaking initiatives, including menstrual leaves, equal benefits for LGBTQ+ partners, and gender neutral parental leaves. Tata Steel is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, safe and fair workplace and has taken a target of having 25 per cent diverse workforce by 2025, the release said. PTI BS MM MM