At Roche, diversity and inclusion are key elements of our corporate culture. Nowhere is this more true than in Diagnostics Operations, where a diverse global team manufactures and delivers approximately 29 billion healthcare tests every year.

Every day, more than 7,000 employees at nine manufacturing sites around the world build products used by doctors and clinicians worldwide to identify and diagnose disease. 

We are proud to celebrate each other’s differences and believe an inclusive work environment is essential to having a strong global network. Our manufacturing teams employ a high number of women, and we provide opportunities for people with disabilities. We also work in diverse geographies around the globe.

Let’s get to know some of these operations employees who are at the heart of Roche Diagnostics.

Women make up approximately 47% of the overall U.S. labor force; however, they represent only about 29% of the manufacturing workforce, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 1. In Roche Diagnostics Global Operations, about 42% of the employee workforce is female.

Czarina Aguilar is proud to be a woman working in manufacturing because the global team puts patients first and is always innovating to make a positive impact in the world.

Her hope for women in manufacturing is that they keep challenging boundaries by continuing to chase their curiosity and passions. “If we do that, then there are no limits on what we can achieve,” she says.

OPEN at Roche – which stands for Out, Proud & Equal Network – is the LGBTQ+ network for employees.

Founded in Basel, Switzerland in 2012, OPEN now stretches across the globe: There are networks in Australia, China, South Africa, Brazil, the U.S., Switzerland, the Netherlands, Spain, England, Germany and other locations.

Our OPEN groups in Mannheim and Penzberg have been working closely together for many years. We also exchange information regularly on a global level in order to leverage synergies and plan joint actions.

Wilms Torsten, a member of OPEN, is proud of Global Operations’ inclusive work environment. He had a really nice bonding experience with his former manager after coming out during a discussion about minorities – not because of his orientation, but out of mutual respect for each other. They still support each other today as mentor and mentee.

“I have never been concerned or worried that my orientation could mean any disadvantage in dealing with me or my career at Roche,” Torsten says.


Throughout our Diagnostics manufacturing network, people with disabilities perform important jobs and help us deliver quality products on time to our customers for the benefit of patients worldwide.

The Brändi employees work on a manufacturing assembly line for our Blood Gas & Electrolytes production in Rotkreuz. Ingrid Meier and Taylan Güner are concentrated and very precise in their work. With their eye for detail, they have a great ability to spot errors, and their ambition motivates them to deliver flawless work.

Not only does their employment make sense socially, but it also pays off economically: In-house outsourcing was thoroughly examined and won out over expensive automation.

A long-term collaboration brings advantages for both sides: Efficient and independent employees of the Brändi Foundation will get jobs in the general labor market, will be integrated into teams and will be assigned high-quality tasks. And for Roche employees, time will be freed up to work on other important tasks.

Our manufacturing network is a global team, with colleagues in Europe, China, the U.S. and South Africa. Our Global Operations site in Cape Town manufactures sequencing diagnostic products for Roche.

A Quality Control Team Lead at our Cape Town site, Karusha Moonsamy has always been interested in philanthropy. After Kapa Biosystems was acquired by Roche in 2015, she pursued different ways to give back and was excited to see all that our company had to offer.

With some encouragement from a colleague, Karusha applied to take part in the Global Philanthropic Secondment Programme, a Roche initiative that matches employee expertise with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) across the globe. She earned a spot as a co-instructor for a career starter program at Namibia University of Science and Technology and visited Namibia in person.

As a Children’s Walk Ambassador for Roche, Karusha will also take part in a visit to the Children’s Dream Organization, a non-profit organization improving education in Southeast Asia. She traveled to Cambodia with other Ambassadors and represented Roche at the opening of a new school and a computer lab.

References

  1. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics [Internet, cited 2022 Dec 13]. Available from:

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