Pride Month 2024: Three ways you can help staff be themselves

Authenticity at work means existing as your real, whole self.

At first glance you might think that responsibility falls on individual employees, but it doesn’t.

There are several pieces of legislation in Australia to eliminate discrimination on the basis of age, race, sex, pregnancy, disability, and marital status.

Meeting your obligations under these laws is, in reality, the minimal requirement for your business. A good equity and diversity strategy goes beyond just ticking boxes. It can offer benefits like boosting employee productivity, opening your business to new markets, increasing innovation and making your company a more attractive prospect to jobseekers.

In order to gain these benefits, however, your staff must feel comfortable being themselves in the workplace. If your staff aren’t given opportunities to express themselves, they may hold back, and your business will lose out on their full potential, skills, and ideas.

So, today, let’s talk about three straightforward ways you can encourage your staff to be themselves at work throughout the year.

Have diverse representation in leadership

Representation matters. In the workplace, it’s essential to recognize the value of having leaders who are not only great at their jobs but also mirror the diversity and identities of the staff.

Having an established and respected staff member that your workforce believe they can lean on for support immediately creates a safe space. This is doubly important for under-represented groups who are more likely to feel sidelined in wider business conversations.

A lack of representation can make employees from diverse backgrounds and experiences feel like their presence is unwelcome or an empty attempt at diversity. This will quickly lead to isolation and disengagement. If your business leaders all more or less share features, behaviours, lifestyles, and experiences—your business is likely to stagnate and suffer for a lack of new ideas and perspectives.

More diversity and inclusion at work has proven to result in better outcomes for businesses. It can:

• Improve wellbeing, with workers 10 times more likely to be very satisfied then workers in non-inclusive teams
• Boost innovation by 5 times more than non-inclusive teams
• Minimise risk with workers being far less likely to experience discrimination or harassment at work
  

Use gender neutral language

When it comes to diversity and inclusion at work, awareness building must be continuous and ongoing. This awareness will heighten your vigilance against unconscious bias and other aspects of your operations that may inadvertently harm your business.

One easy example is how masculine language is often the default option. A word alone cannot cause tangible harm to an individual, but it can have an unintended impact depending on the context in which it’s used.

If you use masculine pronouns in a job advert, for example, capable female candidates may refrain from throwing their hat in the ring. This means you’re potentially losing out on the best talent and most suitable candidate for the role, without even knowing it.

Be mindful that the language you use in your policies and when speaking to your team are taking individuals into account. For transgender individuals, the pronouns and language you use is incredibly important.

Making sure all your employees feel safe, seen, supported, and welcome starts with the language and words you use at work. Set the right example for your staff and make sure your teams feel comfortable expressing themselves at work.

Create a strong diversity and inclusivity policy

Most companies have employee handbooks and policies in place to make sure they’re compliant with legislation surrounding diversity and equity at work. But not all companies have policies in place that go beyond protecting their business, to genuinely supporting their staff.

If your policy doesn’t define clear expectations for diversity and inclusion, your business won’t benefit from the full breadth of possibilities diverse teams bring.

A top-class diversity and inclusion policy should:

• Clearly define your desired workplace culture, and define the role of diversity and inclusion in upholding and enriching that environment
• Include the programs, plans, and initiatives you plan to roll out to create and maintain a diverse work culture
• Encourage senior management and leaders to take ownership of diversity and inclusion goals emphasizing their pivotal role in guiding and communicating these values to your staff
• Allow staff to sign and accept the document and commitment to the policy

BrightHR can help you craft the perfect policy for your business with our handy library of expertly written HR document templates.

It’s backed by our BrightAdvice service, which gives you 24/7 access to employment relations advisers from wherever you are. You can book a demo with our friendly software experts to see exactly how our services can support you.