What's the impact of the pandemic on workplace equality?
As the dangerous Covid-19 pandemic continues to take its toll, it has brought havoc in the business environment from closing small businesses to permanently changing workplaces and working styles. The pandemic continues to have a disproportionate effect on specific groups of people, especially women, ethnic minorities, young employees, and working parents.
When diversity and inclusion initiatives are at risk of falling off the radar, it is high time that businesses address these inequalities and re-establish diversity and inclusion efforts that may have been disregarded or re-prioritized during the pandemic. In the current climate, all organizations should re-think their processes for all of their resourcing decisions. This includes questioning all the key decisions which are taken by the top leadership alone and checking if these decisions have created a bias towards a specific group of people. Human Resource professionals should play a pivotal role in avoiding systemic bias by facilitating leaders to make those decisions and revamping the hiring process if required.
“Companies that embrace diversity and inclusion in all aspects of their business statistically outperform their peers” – John Bersin
Though having an inclusive and diverse business environment might have fallen off from the business agenda, businesses can't be complacent about its importance. Organizations that fail to foster an inclusive organizational culture might struggle in this climate and in the future post the pandemic.
Women, especially mothers, are facing an enormous challenge at home and at work today. As per McKinsey, one in three women is considering downsizing their careers or leaving the workforce. Mothers and particularly mothers of young children are far more likely to consider leaving the workforce entirely. A majority cite child care responsibilities as a primary reason for downsizing or leaving.
Hence business leaders need to fight hard to maintain a balanced and diverse organization that does not go back to some of the monocultures that had preceded the more modern and progressive organizations.
Now it is not the time to have diversity off the table. Organizations need to understand the importance of empathy, cooperation, and community building. This will make organizations achieve their strategic goals, make themselves future-ready and bridge the gap between where they want and where they want to be. More than ever, we now need to have a different mindset and foster organizational transformation underpinned by Diversity and Inclusion by creating a culture of belonging, and connecting all to the shared goal is the best way to face adversity and win.
References:
https://blog.vantagecircle.com/understanding-equality-in-the-workplace/
https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/diversity-and-inclusion/women-in-the-workplace