Don't just wait for the Equality Bill to address diversity issues

We are now a matter of weeks away from the introduction of the Equality Bill. Over recent weeks the Bill has provoked much controversy, with the head of the Catholic Church criticising its existence. So why all the attention?

The Equality Bill sets out to strengthen protection, advance equality and simplify the law. The aim of the bill is to ensure "different people will work together more happily and easily … A good mix of workers means a good mix of different skills and what people know. This will help us get through the bad times much better together”

This desire to create an inclusive working environment for all is laudable, but is it that simple? The Equality Bill aims to deliver a diverse and inclusive workforce, working in harmony to leverage creativity and drive high performance in turbulent times. In my opinion, this is a leap of hope too far.

For one thing, to truly drive a diverse and inclusive work force we must address years of society’s unconscious biases. We should look at a range of interventions; ‘branding’ roles differently to be ensure they are more attractive to a broader pool of talent and changing ‘unwritten’ cultural success criteria, to name just two.

Secondly, the behaviour of individuals must be assessed and developed in the right way to affect organisational change. CHPD research tells us that certain behaviours in many organisations are underdeveloped and undervalued and three of these – teamwork, empathy and conceptual flexibility – are critical to creating a more inclusive environment. Interestingly, women are very often naturally stronger in at least two of these behaviours - empathy and teamwork.

Putting clear legislation in place is a step in the right direction. This Bill will encourage organisations to review their existing practices and policies to ensure alignment and compliance with potential new legislation, which by default will put diversity back in the spotlight for 2010 and beyond, but without action to develop behaviours which help to create an inclusive environment, we won't see substantial change.
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The danger is that organisations complying with new legislation only prevents obvious injustice or at worst encourages people to dress prejudice in different ways. Take this as an opportunity to address the behaviours that encourage diversity and begin the process of real change.

Written by Sonia Bate, consultant at CHPD.