Challenge of Preventing Discrimination in the Workplace
The UK saw nearly four times as many sex discrimination claims in 2015/16 as the previous year*. There were almost 20 times as many age discrimination claims in the same time period. This makes for a real issue that requires real solutions to fight discrimination in the workplace in the UK**.
According to the UK Equality Act 2010, the legal definition of discrimination in the workplace outlines four main categories:
The last two define the leading causes of discrimination in the workplace. Employees often do not speak out because they’re afraid of being punished or stigmatised. At a foundational level, employees need to be confident in their organisation’s “zero tolerance” policy. This is encouraged by offering a safe means to report discrimination in the workplace without fear of retaliation.
See How Harassment & Discrimination Training Can Help
*Ministry of Justice | Discrimination claims in Employment Tribunals: the Scottish perspective
**Gov.uk | Discrimination: Your rights
Step 1: Commitment from leaders at all levels of an organization is needed for change to happen. All leaders (not just compliance and HR) must genuinely understand the importance of innovation and change and hold others accountable to work toward a discrimination-free work environment.
Step 2: Build a strong organizational culture, with a high focus on ethics and respect.
Step 3: Develop the components of your workplace discrimination prevention programme by updating your code of conduct, implementing and distributing harassment and discrimination policies, and providing workplace harassment training.
Step 4: Train your employees on how to spot the warning signs so they can identify and report any red flags as they arise.
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