An All-Inclusive Workplace

Imagine if we all liked the same things, looked the same and acted the same. Life would be pretty dull.

The same goes for our workforce - diversity can improve productivity and overall business success.

An all-inclusive culture should prevail in the workplace where everyone is treated fairly.

If this doesn’t happen, what are the risks?

If every employee made the same decisions, had the same experiences, skills, and opinions, then the likelihood of a strong team dynamic and working relationships would be unlikely.

Then there are the legal risks.

A discrimination claim due to sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marriage/civil partnership or sex. The Equality Act 2010 provides protection for the LGBTQ+ community.

Let’s take a quick look at the Equality Act 2020 and the types of discrimination organisations should try to avoid.

Direct discrimination – is when someone is treated worse than another person (or people) because they have a protected characteristic.

Harassment - this is what many of us regard as banter - colleagues might make comments about the way someone looks, their voice or tease them. Someone can bring a claim on these grounds even if the characteristic doesn't apply. A heterosexual male with a high-pitched voice is teased as being gay, is still protected and can bring a claim. The organisation is responsible for their employees’ actions and words and so claims would be made against the employer, not the colleague.

Victimisation - this is often confused with harassment, but victimisation is when the individual raises a complaint or concern relating to their treatment e.g. "I'm being teased". If the Company then treats the employee unfavourably because of this complaint e.g. micro-managing them, selection for redundancy etc, then the employee has a discrimination claim.

Constructive dismissal - if an employee has more than two years' service and complaints are not actioned or support is not provided, the employee can resign and claim constructive dismissal.

All these claims can come with heavy penalties for employers, not to mention the time it takes to collect evidence to even reach the employment tribunal.

Get in touch with Stanley & Davis to discuss how we can help ensure your training and policies are up to date and actioned.