Prominent firms such as Danske Bank, Allen & Overy, EY and FinTrU were out in force at Pride. Leaders within these organisations truly value being seen as ethical, fair and engaged employers. They know that all their staff expect to be able to bring their ‘true’ selves to work. And of course, when people are happy in work they are productive, so it makes total sense.
When it comes to the attraction of new talent to an organisation, we should think hard about how we position ourselves as inclusive, especially if the intention is to appoint Millennials. A recent statistic, published by YouGov and referenced by Fergal McFerran of Stonewall, at the recent Powered By Talent conference stated, “49% of 18 – 24 year olds now identify as something other than 100% heterosexual”
Employers should derive two items from this statistic straight away. Firstly, it is highly likely your organisation has LGBT staff employed within. Secondly, employers seeking to recruit, must be seen to welcome potential candidates from all avenues, failure to do so could mean a significant reduction in applications.
Abacus-pride-in-recruitment
If your organisation is welcoming of diversity, strives for inclusion and is visible in doing so, congratulations. Unfortunately, here in Northern Ireland many organisations are still not thinking widely enough in definition. Those organisations need to establish if their agreed policies are indeed active practice.
If you feel your organisation would benefit from being more visible and more inclusive, please visit Stonewall’s Diversity Champions Programme.
Justin Rush is a career recruiter and Director at Abacus Professional Recruitment. Justin can be contacted on justin@abacus.jobs for further advice.