Dae Hanley

Dae Hanley (pronouns: they/them) has been working in the Civil Service for 10 years, and in the Department of Justice since 2021. While already out as a trans-non-binary person in their home life, Dae took the opportunity when moving into the Department of Justice to “come out” in a professional context also. Since then, they have served two years as chair of the Justice LGBT+ Network committee, and have worked across Departments and Public Sector bodies to establish the Proud to Work for Ireland Network – an umbrella network of LGBT+ civil and public servants and allies, aiming to promote visibility and inclusion of queer staff at all levels of public service work, and to develop and share resources, awareness, and education across agencies. Dae has coordinated the participation of 1,200 public servants in Dublin Pride for the past three years, has managed numerous talks and educational events, and recently represented the Proud to Work for Ireland Network in receiving the ‘Employee Resource Group’ award at the 2024 Galas LGBT+ Awards. Dae’s work is focussed on the ‘grassroots’ approach, working with those passionate about boosting minority and under-represented voices in the workplace. Focussing on the strength of networking and community-building, the Network has grown substantially in recent years due to the passion and engagement of its members. Dae is eager to continue this momentum in the coming years, developing stronger relationships with other employee resource groups, NGOs supporting minorities, and reaching into communities of public servants not just in large urban centres, but across all of Ireland.