In your organisation, you will deal with employees and other stakeholders from many different walks of life. People of different ages, colours, cultures, sex and people with different faiths and beliefs. You will also encounter people with different disabilities, and it is vital both in and outside of work that none of us treats anyone unfairly based on their characteristics. You should inclusively treat everyone without prejudice, bias, or favouritism. Everyone should be treated equally.

There is legislation called The Equality Act 2010 that covers this topic which you should now read and understand. Click on the link below to access this resource.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/equality-act-2010-guidance

In your role working with both internal and external stakeholders, you need to understand the protected characteristic covered by The Equality Act 2010, as treating someone unfairly because of these characteristics is unlawful and you can be prosecuted under the act.

Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity is about recognising and valuing the differences between us all. It’s about understanding that we are all different and we all have different views, beliefs, abilities, opinions, skills and backgrounds. Some differences are on the surface and some go much deeper.

There are 4 levels of diversity:

Internal Diversity

These are characteristics we are born into and did not choose for ourselves, most of which we cannot change.

Here are some examples of internal diversity:

External Diversity

This means characteristics that are related to a person but aren’t characteristics they were born with. These characteristics are heavily influenced by other people, our surroundings and our background. However, these are characteristics we can change.

Some examples of external diversity include:

Organisational Diversity

Also sometimes referred to as functional diversity, these are differences between people that are determined by their organisation. These are things that distinguish one employee from another.

These differences should not change the way an employee is treated at work as each employee should be valued for the contributions they make. Some job titles come with a certain stigma or stereotype attached to them. This is a form of bias and you should not let it affect the way you treat people.

Some examples of organisational diversity include:

Worldview Diversity

Even though many factors help shape our worldview, including our internal, external, and organisational diversity characteristics, everyone still has their own worldview that they align with.

As we go through life and experience many different things this worldview can change. The worldview of others will also change and should be respected whether we agree with it or not.

Some ways in which our world views may differ include topics such as:

Political beliefs
Moral compass
Outlook on life
Epistemology

Inclusion

Inclusion is to involve people and recognise everyone’s worth and dignity. At work, an inclusive environment is one where everyone feels valued and their efforts recognised. All employees should feel that they belong no matter what their characteristics.

We can sometimes exclude people without realising. For example, we may carry out 1-2-1 performance reviews with underperformers and new starters and not carry out a review with top performers, therefore excluding them from the process.

Some occupations and workplaces are still incorrectly viewed as more male, or female-dominated. For example, when you think of a car mechanic do you automatically think of a man or a woman? When you think of a midwife do you picture a man or a woman holding the baby? These are our unconscious biases at play and although it is wrong to consider a job as a man’s or a woman’s job, society has forced these stereotypes on us. However, when we understand that these stereotypes exist, we can try to change them and make these workplaces more diverse and inclusive to all characteristics.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Diversity and Inclusion

Inclusion