Government's Inclusion At Work Report

Last year, Liberty Hive were invited up to Westminster to feed into a Government report commissioned by the Rt Hon Kemi Badenoch for the Inclusion at Work Panel.  Yesterday we were invited back to attend the reception to mark the publication of the report.

We heard from Rt Hon Kemi Bandenoch MP on the findings and whilst the headlines were not all rosy, the overall theme was to end ineffective business EDI practices in favour of evidence based results.  

Interestingly, the UK employs twice as many D&I workers and we spend over £557m of taxpayers money a year employing 10,000 public D&I personnel.  Furthermore, the terms 'diversity', 'inclusion' were found to be conceptually ambiguous and 'equality' and 'equity' are used interchangeably, incorrectly.

There were 3 key key take outs:

1. Framework: the panel set out recommendations for the Government, saying ministers should endorse a new framework of criteria employers could apply to their D&I practice for effectiveness and value for money.

3. Legal Clarification: a call for the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) to explain and clarify the legal status for employers in relation to D&I practices, with particular focus on the implication of recent rulings for HR policies and staff networks.

So what do we think?

Yesterday was about evidence based practice, something Liberty Hive has been able to demonstrate through the use of our technology.  We have started with Salary Transparency and seen how this one thing can improve pay equality amongst women and underrepresented groups but we are constantly thinking about what other practices will continue to promote a diverse and inclusive community.

This report acknowledges the misunderstandings around D&I and suggests frameworks for an evidence based approach but we can't help but wonder if we will end up doing more tick boxing and creating more work.