What is Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)?
Diversity
Refers to a workforce that is made up of people that includes a range of ages and ethnicities, with no discrimination of their gender identities, sexual orientations, religious beliefs, physical or mental abilities, medical conditions, work experiences, and job classifications, including all of their perspectives, preferences, and biases.
Equity & Inclusion
The creation of a work environment and culture that enables all employees of all diversities to participate and thrive. The Society for Human Resource Management, SHRM, defines it as one where “all individuals are treated fairly and respectfully, have equal access to opportunities and resources, and contribute fully to the organisation’s success.”
How can Companies Provide Better DEI Opportunities?
One such way would include conducting blind interviews.
Blind interviews are interview processes which may include the removal of name, gender, race, religion and additional accessibility requirements of a candidate. The candidates are assessed solely on the presentation of their resume, past experiences, as well as skillsets.
Blind recruitment reduces the risk of conscious or unconscious bias affecting the decision-making process. Several experts have found blind recruitment – including the removal of names – to be particularly helpful in enhancing the diversity of their organisations, providing better team performance and making talent retention easier.
What can HR do to Enhance DEI in the Workplace?
DEI in the workplace is key to create a thriving workforce, especially when it comes to employee engagement. Workplace diversity enables creativity and innovation because every employee can contribute their experiences and perspectives to the discussions.
The role of HR lies in:
1) Educating Managers on the Importance of Diversity in the Workplace
Do not assume that managers understand the importance of workplace diversity, or that they know how to hire and manage a diverse group of employees. Empower them with the skills necessary to grow and nurture a diverse team. Scheduling cultural and other sensitivity training is a great first step.
2) Creating More Inclusive Workplace Policies
Facilitating workplace diversity may mean creating new policies or amending current ones system-wide, from recruitment to performance evaluations and promotions.
Some examples include: Allowing employees to take off work for religious holidays that may not be officially observed by the company, offering on-site day-care, extending the option for flexible work hours.
3) Ensuring Clear Communication and Follow-through
Clear communication and follow-through is important to ensure initiatives are effective.
Employees should feel comfortable to confide in their managers, especially about their treatment in the company due to their gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, or other factors.
Managers should feel confident in their communication with employees by avoiding making any assumptions and using inclusive language.
HR should regularly ask for feedback from your diverse workforce and address any concerns related to poor employee and manager communication to ensure transparency.
The FAANG (such as Google and Apple) publishes their diversity reports annually for transparency purposes too!
Case Study: Ban-the-Box (BTB) Policy
In the United States, many jurisdictions have adopted the Ban-the-Box (BTB) policy, where employers cannot ask for criminal records of applicants on the application form, in hope of allowing ex-offenders a better chance at employment.
Using the Ban-the-Box policy as a reference, while policies and blind interviews might be useful in ensuring that there would be a fairer hiring process, such measures are not flawless, and the key to create an inclusive workforce would still be to eliminate discrimination and biases.
However, a study conducted before and after the BTB was implemented, found that the policy increased racial disparities in the number of call-backs. Before BTB was implemented, white applicants to BTB-affected employers received 7% more call-backs than similar black applicants, and after BTB the gap grew to 43% (Banerjee & Duflo, 2019, p.113). The employers had made the assumption that black applicants were more likely to have a past criminal record. While the policy started off with the intention to make the workplace hiring process fairer, it further worsened the chances of employment for black applicants.
Ultimately, to create an inclusive and diverse workplace, it is vital that employers do not get influenced by discrimination and personal biases in the selection process.
References:
Banerjee, A. V., & Duflo, E. (2019). Good Economics for Hard Times (1st ed.). PublicAffairs.
Inclusion & Diversity. (2021). Retrieved from https://www.apple.com/diversity/
Du, Y. (2021). What does Diversity and Inclusion at the Workplace Mean? Retrieved from https://scholarshipguide.com.sg/content/features/what-does-diversity-inclusion-at-the-workplace-mean/
2021 Diversity Annual Report (2021). Retrieved from https://diversity.google/annual-report/
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