Celebrate Pride Month With Inclusion and diversity at work

Chezuba
June 8, 2022

How pride month came to be

June marks Pride Month across the world, honoring the LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer) community. The Stonewall Uprising, which lasted six days in Manhattan in June 1969 as the police collided with LGBTQ activists, was a defining moment in queer history.

The LGBTQ abbreviation has now been expanded to LGBTQIA+, with the extra letters representing intersex and asexuality. There are numerous variants to these letters but,  To celebrate Pride, you don't have to fit into any of these categories. Even if you identify as straight or aren't sure how you identify, pride can and should be honored by all.

Diversity and Inclusion at work

Diversity and inclusion are distinct notions that are related but not synonymous. Diversity refers to a corporation's makeup or representation. Inclusion refers to how well different groups of people's contributions, presence, and perspectives are appreciated and incorporated into an environment. A diverse and inclusive workplace is one in which everyone feels equally included and supported in all aspects of the workplace, irrespective of who they are or what they do for the company.

It is no secret that when someone is given due respect and credit regardless of how they identify in terms of sex, gender, race, age,  physical ability, religious background, or sexual orientation, they tend to perform better.

Companies receive the benefits of creativity and innovation, a strong business culture, enhanced employee performance, and more when they welcome and value workers from all backgrounds into an inclusive workplace. The next step in successfully supporting a diverse workforce is to create an inclusive atmosphere that welcomes and incorporates each individual.

Building a more inclusive and diverse workplace

In a three-year period, according to Deloitte, inclusive workplaces are 6X as likely to be innovative and have 2.3X the cash flow per employee as non-inclusive workplaces. Let’s discuss ways in which you can make your workplace more D&I-friendly. 

  1. Start at the top

Your leadership team is your most powerful ally when it comes to developing and promoting an inclusive and diverse workplace. 

Educate your firm's executives on the value of diversity and inclusion. by  Offering diversity and inclusion (D&I) training. This entails creating a secure space for your executives to get all the uncomfortable or awkward questions out of the way before launching company-wide diversity efforts. Once leadership is at ease and on board, they'll be crucial assets in setting a genuine, inclusive tone for everyone.

  1. Make inclusion a part of your core values

Modifying your company's core values on a regular basis, especially during times of big change or during dedicated times such as pride month. If your core values don't already include policies for an inclusive culture, get leadership approval to change them and create a forum for D&I policies.

Seeking input from your employees to create policies that work best for them will help them relate to the policy better and trust that the company has their best interests at heart. Setting up a D&I task force can be of great help here. Make sure the task force is diverse, with people representing not only different social groups, but also different office locations in case you operate from different locations. However, be respectful in your approach to recruiting members

  1. Use inclusive language 

Model inclusive language in all professional communications. Learn and use the preferred pronouns for your company's employees, and refer to someone's spouse as "spouse" or "partner" rather than the gendered "husband" or "wife" (especially if you don't know their gender). Non-married couples can also benefit from the term “Partner”. You may also encourage employees to add their preferred pronouns in their Slack descriptions and their email signatures. 

  1. Make your physical spaces more accessible

By providing gender-neutral restrooms, many businesses have already done a fantastic job of encouraging non-binary and genderqueer inclusivity. Consider the need for privacy and safe spaces at work, such as lactation facilities for new moms, prayer or meditation spaces, and quiet workstations for workers who may be distracted or overstimulated by open floor plans, if your company hasn't already done so.

This also applies to the far reaches of the universe. Create digital safe "spaces" by asking employees to set out time on the calendar for prayer and other personal needs. Make digital culture events optional to honor introverts. Make sure your office, especially common spaces like the kitchen and restrooms, is wheelchair accessible to welcome all employees and guests.

  1. Organize events and projects that promote diversity and inclusion.

The sky's the limit when it comes to designing work events and projects that promote diversity. So throw a Pride Month mixer, show a documentary over lunch, or invite guest speakers to speak on a variety of themes.

Additionally, ensure that your organization's actions encourage and support diversity. Who do you plan on inviting to public events? During volunteer days and fundraisers, which charity causes does your firm support? As you actively celebrate your inclusive workplace culture, all of these are excellent opportunities to boost team-building and morale.

To sum up

The world is a hub for impressive talent at every turn and your organization can benefit from them all. By breaking the confines of prejudice and viewing everyone as an asset full of potential, you are already taking steps to create a mindful and respectful workspace for everyone working there. These pointers will help your employees feel included and help you retain talent from under-represented groups.

Chezuba has partnered with nonprofit organizations from around the world that support the pride flag and work for those who are discriminated against and left voiceless for being different. To give your employees a chance to volunteer for nonprofits that work for such noble causes, book a free demo with us!

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