Black Lives Matter – time for employers to act?
The news is currently dominated by the Black Lives matter campaign, following the death of George Floyd in the US. The protests that have followed have highlighted the serious problem of discrimination within our societies, an issue that lives within our organisations, and employers need to commit to making real and substantial change now.
The need for action on race inequality across UK organisations is clear. Research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows that “people from ethnic minority groups are often at a disadvantage in the labour market and are more likely to be unemployed and over-represented in poorly paid and unstable jobs”. There is also a significant under-representation of ethnic diversity at the top of UK boards, as shown by the Government’s recent Parker review.
Responding to recent events, Peter Cheese, CEO of the CIPD says:
“Racism has no place in our society. Businesses must be part of the change we all need, to step up and stamp out prejudice, and to build diverse and supportive cultures of respect and fairness for all. It is important now that leaders across all organisations make time to address current events with their people. There are four key principles they can adopt:
1. Clarify the organisation’s stance and values.
2. Communicate your messages consistently and ensure that communication is two way.
3. Connect your people by talking openly, creating an environment of respect and safety, and to share experiences and learn from each other.
4. Commit to sustained action, visible leadership and a willingness to change.”
ACAS has produced comprehensive guidance on how to improve equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace, advising that a workplace encouraging equality, diversity and inclusion can help:
- make it more successful;
- keep employees happy and motivated;
- prevent serious or legal issues arising, such as bullying, harassment and discrimination;
- to better serve a diverse range of customers;
- improve ideas and problem-solving; and
- attract and keep good staff.
A good start is to have a workplace policy covering equality, diversity and inclusion. This might also be called an ‘equal opportunities policy’.
A policy helps everyone to know:
- the business supports and treats everyone fairly;
- what kind of behaviour is expected of them;
- about discrimination and the law, and what is not acceptable; and
- where to find the procedures for resolving any problems.
Your policy could also point employees to any extra activities or services that your workplace offers, such as staff networks and employee assistance groups or programmes.
When developing a policy, you should:
- consult with your employees and any representatives;
- follow any existing consultations or arrangements with employees or their representatives; and
- make an action plan including what steps will be taken to make sure the policy is put into everyday practice.
The action plan should include:
- how to get staff onboard, for example training for all staff so they all understand the policy, and what needs to happen to make it work in practice;
- how to best monitor and measure if the policy and plan are working as intended, and record those results;
- how to work out if the policy is effective and what needs to change; and
- who will put the policy and plan into practice and by when.
ACAS states that employers, managers and employees should all understand the importance of equality, diversity and inclusion in all areas of work, including:
- recruiting new staff;
- training and promoting existing staff;
- equal pay;
- religious beliefs and practice;
- dress code;
- unacceptable behaviour;
- the dismissal of staff;
- redundancy;
- different types of leave for parents; and
- flexible working.
Read the full ACAS guidance, Improving equality, diversity and inclusion in your workplace here.
In other related news, Lib Dem MP Layla Moran is calling for larger employers to be forced to publish their ethnicity pay gaps to tackle inequality in the workplace.
She said the Black Lives Matter protests provide an opportunity to tackle “ingrained issues” in society.
Moran has asked business lobby groups, the CBI and British Retail Consortium (BRC), as well as the Trades Union Congress (TUC), for help in writing legislation to make companies with 250 or more employees publish their ethnicity pay gap.
The Liberal Democrat leadership candidate’s proposed bill would build on laws that already make firms of this size publish their gender pay gaps.
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