The ever-growing need for inclusive workplaces

*This article was originally written for the North West Business Insider blog

2020 has been an extraordinary year, for both people and business. No-one has been left untouched by the pandemic. But research suggests that the impact has not been equally felt.

Some groups of society, that were already under-represented in the UK workforce, have been hardest hit. Women, people with disabilities, those from ethnic minorities and those from socially disadvantaged background, are bearing the brunt of the crisis.

The inequalities faced long before the pandemic are now being magnified through the actions of the virus and the unintended consequences of our response to it.

For example, emerging evidence indicates that mothers are dropping out of the labour force due to childcare responsibilities, young people are more likely to be furloughed, and people with disabilities are at a higher risk of being made redundant.

The North East England Chamber of Commerce’s Women’s Leadership Forum has also suggested that the gender pay gap is rising, and women are more likely to have lost their jobs or had their hours cut during the pandemic*.

As a mother of four children - working full time from home - I can completely identify with the challenge of balancing work and childcare. I have felt the struggle - home schooling, nursing a child with suspected Covid, the look of rejection on the kid’s faces as I send them away during work calls, and adapting my work hours to manage all of this. Less time for exercise or “self-care” as many prescribe for coping with stress. 

However, I’m fortunate to work for a company that is incredibly supportive of working parents, with flexible working hours and a ‘bring your full self to work’ policy – ultimately resulting in the kids joining me on many a Teams call! I also have a supportive husband who has been working from home too. But I know this is not the case for everyone – and my heart breaks for those who have had to make a sacrifice.

It’s now more important than ever for businesses to take workplace equality seriously. Accenture launched a new report ‘Who we are is how we’ll grow’, during the recent CBI Annual Conference, which focuses on why Covid-19 has accelerated the need for equality in the workplace, why it’s vital for economic recovery and what business leaders need to do moving forward.  

Our research into workplace culture has shown that there are practical steps that can be taken to create more inclusive cultures, and that in such cultures all employees are more likely to thrive in their role and advance in their career. It also found that having an inclusive culture and diverse workforce leads to more innovation, which is vital to fuel growth.

The report highlights that if all UK companies were able to improve workplace inclusivity by just 10%, the resulting uplift in ‘innovation mindset’ - their ability and willingness to innovate - could increase UK GDP by up to 1.5% each year, equating to a total boost to the UK economy of £393 billion between now and 2030.

What’s more, Accenture has also found that by meeting six fundamental human needs through work, companies can unlock more of their people’s potential, resulting in a further increase in business performance.

Our ‘Care to do Better’ report introduces a framework called “Net Better Off”, identifying Emotional & Mental, Relational, Physical, Financial, Purposeful and Employable, as the key dimensions that leaders should focus on. The research suggests that the pandemic has encouraged CXOs to take more responsibility of all of these factors - but with safety and relational needs ever increasing in importance - leaders must do more to champion workforce well-being and equality.

So, it’s clear that people need more from their employers right now - and businesses need to focus on creating inclusive workplaces that meet these needs - in order to emerge from this crisis stronger than ever.