The Work Clinic

Ros Taylor raises the debate on diversity in the workplace and points out that not enough is being done to attract ethnic minories into national businesses.

Ros Taylor:
A national organisation has no diversity at any level. A recent campaign they ran targeted black and ethnic minorities but no-one there was black. They then chose an advertising agency to front the campaign and no-one on the staff there was from an ethnic minority either. Are organisations so hidebound that they don't see the value of representation? Surely they can see that diversity would provide them with insights that would help their businesses to prosper for heaven's sake. And if they can't what can we do to help them see the light?

For further information:
Diversity report raises fear of backlash

Recruiting a diverse workforce: legal implications

Figures released from the Employment Tribunal Service show an increase in the number of workplace discrimination claims. With claims of sexual discrimination up 14,250 from 2,524 and racial discrimination cases at 4,103 from 786 last year Jo Causon says:

Jo Causon:
It’s a worrying sign because discrimination on the basis of difference is unacceptable at any level. What organisations need to do is implement formal diversity policies which are clear and well communicated to staff. In many cases, resistance to implementing policies is due to a lack of understanding of the benefits that diversity can bring...

Jon Ingham, executive consultant at Strategic Dynamics:

Improving organisational diversity must be one of the biggest challenges in human resources today. It is being pushed up the agenda by the increasing mix of nationalities and cultures, as well as the bifurcation of generations, within the workforce (with more older but also more younger workers in employment), and also the growing tendency for individual employees to demand personalised employment relationships and ways of working.

And it is being pulled forward as a strategic issue by by organisational leaders wanting to tap a broader range of experiences and perspectives in order to drive effective decision making and innovation...

Catherine Quinn investigates how to strike a balance to find out how staff of all faiths can enjoy the Christmas festivities or equally how HR can make it easy and comfortable for those employees who want to opt-out of the celebrations altogether.

by Catherine Quinn:
Whether you love or hate the run up to Christmas the chances are you'll be exchanging gifts under the tree this year. So spare a thought for office workers subject to endless yuletide festivities who don't even celebrate 25 December. For staff of many religions Christmas is strictly off-bounds, which can cause the HR department concerns about promoting diversity in an office thick with decorations and mince-pies.

Speaking on behalf of The Muslim Council of Britain, Tanveer Parnuz suggests that getting staff of different religions involved is a common approach. "Most staff who we speak to would join in, and attend a Christmas dinner, or Christmas party" says Tanveer. "But HR should be aware that Christmas celebrations should be an option rather than an obligation. So they need to communicate with staff that they can opt out of the Christmas dinner if they want to. Or if a staff member feels uncomfortable going to a staff party with alcohol then that should be taken into account. Tanveer has also encountered situations where flexible employers have been able to offer holiday in lieu of Christmas day, on the basis that it is a religious celebration...

Equal opportunity campaigner the Fawcett Society's Seeing Double campaign has published the final report of the Routes to Power research study on ethnic minority women leaders. Based on interviews with 23 of the most senior ethnic minority women in Britain, the report reveals that organisations are still struggling to recognise and reward expertise when it is found in ethnic minority women.

Among the findings:

• There are only two ethnic minority women MPs, and there has never been an Asian woman MP
• There are only 168 ethnic minority women local councillors in England - less than 1% of the total
• There is only one senior ethnic minority woman in the judiciary
• Around 3% of the senior civil service are from ethnic minority backgrounds, and only a third of them are women
• Ethnic minority women make up just 2.3% of public appointments
• Of the 961 directors of FTSE 100 companies, only 8 are women of non-European descent

According to the report, a gap between race equality legislation and social attitudes is producing two new forms of organisational discrimination - tokenism, where ethnic minority women are being used as tokens so that organisations can be shown to be embracing diversity, and typecasting, where ethnic minority women are being streamed into specialising in ethnic minority or gender issues. Tokenism and typecasting were seen to be most severe in politics and in the public sector.

Without resorting to positive discrimination, how are employers to improve the situation? What can organisations offer women from ethnic minority backgrounds? And what can be done to convince girls from ethnic minorities to opt for a career in business?

Until recently, older people were increasingly staying in work in line with the government's aspiration to extend working lives. With the slow down in the economy all this has been put on hold.  Possibly, HR departments are husbanding talent and skills selectively, recognising the value of age balanced workforces as they prune. Surprisingly the employment figures of older workers are holding up reasonably well in the recession - so far.

This relatively reassuring picture should not disguise the differential pain that older workers experience when they lose their jobs however. Older workers stay unemployed for longer. The latest figures cover the August to October quarter which is before the dramatic changes started to work through. By next month, the picture may be different.

After six months out of work, a fifty something's chance of return diminishes greatly. Again this may not be evident in the figures  but long term unemployment, disillusionment of fruitless job searching and wide spread age discrimination, will force many older people to become "economically inactive," joining the ranks of the hidden unemployed. Those who get work are likely to take jobs considerably below their potential - and previous earnings.

This is why recessions are bad news for older workers. During the period 1980 - 95, the proportion of 50 to state pension age workers economically active, declined from around 83% to 65%.

During the three and four day weeks forced upon us during Ted Heath's government in the 1970s, a "job release scheme" was introduced. "Young workers for old," was its essential message.

Would it be unlawful today? The lawyers would cite the Palacios v Cortefiel Servicios case where the Spanish government introduced mandatory retirement to boost youth employment figures. (The ECJ said this was legal, by the way).

But the government wants to extend working lives not cut people off at the knees. The reason is simple - with birth rates and longevity heading in opposite directions, we are facing labour shortages in the longer term.

Companies performing best, in recessions and at other times, are the ones which value talent and knowledge, investing in these things in good times and bad alike.

In the recessions of the 70s 80s and early 90s, millions quit on early retirement and redundancy packages, siphoning skills and knowledge out of the economy. Whatever emerges this time, companies investing in competent people of all ages, developing them and applying an "age management" mind set, will be fittest to emerge from the bruising experience.

Chris Ball

Chief executive

TAEN - The Age and Employment Network

According to The Sun (you don't often read that on Work Clinic ...), the gender pay gap is alive and well, as personified by the hosts of ITV's This Morning - Philip 'Silver fox' Schofield and Fern 'skinny malinky' Britton.

The Sun reports that Schofield is banking £45,000 per show to host the second series of Mr And Mrs while Fern will take home 'just' £15,000 for each programme. 

A source from the show told the Sun: "Fern asked for the same pay cheque as Phil but there isn't a huge production budget.

"Phillip's pay is basically pre-agreed, while Fern is only on an exclusive daytime deal with ITV. Fern won't be aware of this pay difference."

Phillip is believed to be earning more because of his £2 million exclusive contract with ITV, which also includes his presenting duties on Dancing On Ice.

Call me a cynical old grump, but isn't even £15,000 an episode a ridiculous amount of money for sitting on your backside reading from an autocue?

Social work has been in crisis for some time, and more so than ever now, in the aftermath of the Baby P case. According to the Local Government Association (LGA)'s Respect and Protect report, one in 10 social work posts is vacant at any one time.  In fact, so few people now want to work in the beleaguered sector that the LGA is to ask up to 5,000 retired social workers to come back to work.

That's 5000 people who may be out of date with legislation, working practice, even technology. As if the sector wasn't in enough of a mess.

 
Much has been said and written about what organisations lose when their older workers retire, particularly soft skills such as dealing face-to-face with customers, or historical knowledge of the organisation and how it operates. But, except in extreme cases, such as that currently faced by social work bosses, wouldn't it make more sense to keep the knowledge within the company and train younger staff properly, rather than going to the expense and inconvenience of rehiring retirees?

Of course it depends on how long people have been rehired, but have companies thought through the financial implications of training returning retirees? And although personal financial needs may well mean that people are keen to come back to work, surely the majority would prefer to enjoy their well-earned retirement.

Women hitting the glass ceiling - head to the Philippines!

Most of us will by now be aware that women are under-represented in the boardrooms of the UK. What we didn't perhaps realise is that we are now lagging behind South Eastern and East Asian companies.

Figures released this week by business and financial advisers Grant Thornton in their International Business Report place the UK 26th in a list of privately held businesses when it comes to employing women in senior management roles. Just 66% of privately held businesses here have women in senior management positions - some way behind the Philippines (94%), Russia (88%) and mainland China (81%).

Of the 600 UK companies surveyed, an alarming 71% did not have initiatives in place to support women keen to progress to senior management.

According to Alysoun Stewart, Head of Entrepreneurial Advisory at Grant Thornton, "Women today represent nearly 60% of graduates in the European Union, and girls are continuing to outperform boys at school and enter the workplace in equal numbers. This talent is currently under-utilised by the UK's privately held businesses, and represents a huge opportunity to strengthen the capability and capacity of senior management."

It seems incredible that in this day and age, when diversity is all the rage, job applicants with disabilities feel that they need to avoid disclosing them to potential employers.

But according to research by diversity communications agency Greenlight, while 43% tell recruiters about their disability at the pre-application or interview stage, 33% do not tell potential employers at all.

Attraction and Recruitment of Candidates with Disabilities also found that 44% of those who did tell employers were worried it might have an adverse impact on their application. And a third wondered if they had given this information in the right way.

The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 makes it unlawful for employers to discriminate against disabled people for reasons related to their disability. This includes application forms, interview arrangements, promotion, transfer or training opportunities, terms of employment, work-related benefits such as access to recreation or refreshment facilities, and dismissal or redundancy. So why the reluctance?

And what should companies do to ensure that they attract the right candidates, regardless of disability?

This month has seen the arrival of a new City law firm, Maurice Turnor Gardner. Any launch is news these days but this more so than others, for it is a predominantly female firm. Founded by twenty three lawyers and support staff made redundant by Britain's fourth biggest law firm, Allen & Overy, the new firm took the unusual step of drafting the partnership agreement in the female voice. It says "Each member will devote her whole time and attention to the business during normal hours."

The practice will be run by Clare Maurice who, in 1985, became Allen & Overy's first woman partner. Richard Turnor, the only male partner, said that he and his colleagues would recruit both men and women, and that they do not have a specifically feminist agenda.

There has been much talk recently of women leaving the corporate world to set up their own companies. Is this, then, a move towards segregated businesses? Is working for a women-only firm really just a case of having thrown in the towel? Are women beginning to accept that they can't smash the glass ceiling? As senior women move on, younger colleagues will find themselves without role models and potential mentors. And if this is the case, how are companies to motivate younger women employees?

According to Equality Works, the equality and diversity consultancy, workplace bullying is becoming more widespread as a direct result of the recession. Chief executive Jane Farrell says: "Many people think of bullying as simply meaning verbal or sometimes physical abuse," says Farrell. "However, in today's business climate of concern, informal comments or changes in attitude can lead to feelings of being under threat and victimisation."

Farrell also says that bosses need to be more vigilant to prevent serious problems in the future, adding that "Recession and redundancies are currently a hard fact of life but that is no excuse for not handling the situation with compassion and sensitivity."
Why is bullying so prevalent in UK workplaces? And surely now is the time to be supportive of one another.

One of the main problems is that bullies tend to see their behaviour as something else - maybe 'firm management' or their idea of 'encouraging' a team-mate. But at the end of the day, it's just bullying, plain and simple.

Some bullying behaviour to look out for:

Derogatory comments about someone's performance being made in an open-plan office

• So called 'jokes' being made that have the effect of undermining confidence
• People getting more competitive with each other and collaborating less and less
• Managers shouting at staff
• Continual drawing attention to 'difference' such as 'part timers not pulling their weight'.

Much is said and written about diversity, but when it comes to people with disabilities, the focus tends to be on what they can and can't do. But a former worker is suing posh preppy clothes chain Abercrombie & Fitch over their reaction to how she looks.

Law student Riam Dean claims that she was sent to work in the stock room of the chain's Savile Row branch in London because wearing a cardigan (as suggested by a colleague) to cover a prosthetic arm was breaking the company's 'look policy'. Dean also claims that staff are issued with a guidebook outlining how they should look at work, from how they wear their hair to the length of their fingernails.  A spokeswoman for Abercrombie & Fitch has stated that Dean's version of events is inaccurate.

A tribunal is due to begin this week, and regardless of the rights and wrongs of the parties involved, the thought of someone being discriminated against because of any aspect of their appearance is a sobering one. Not only for the workplace, but for society.

Pre-employment screeners Powerchex have published their latest annual survey of CV discrepancies in the financial sector (they don't say how these compare with other, less 'creative' sectors ...). To summarise their findings:

• 19% of candidates' CVs include discrepancies - the highest level in three years
• Nearly all kinds of financial sector companies saw an increase in discrepancies. The largest increase was in the IT sector
• Brokers have a disproportionately large number of applicants with hidden criminal records
• There has been a six-fold spike in the proportion of candidates with undisclosed bankruptcies since last year
• Women were more likely than men to have a discepancy on their CV
• There has been a sharp increase in the number of under 21 year olds with discrepancies on their CVs
• Candidates educated in the state sector are 25% more likely to lie on their CV than the privately educated
• University graduates are more honest than non-graduates
• The better the university a candidate has attended, the less likely they are to lie on their CV

Taken separately, few of these findings would give much cause for thought. But read through in a single sitting, they do seem to point to the fact that it is those already at a disadvantage in the workplace - women and the poorly educated - who feel they have to lie to get on. Particularly in the tradition-bound, misogynistic world of the City.

Four out of every 10 UK workers say they will have to work more than half a decade (six years) longer than they had originally planned to retire, according to research conducted by employee risks and benefits experts Aon Consulting.

According to Aon's Employee Omnibus Survey, 64% of workers believe the recession will delay their retirement plans, with one in five (19%) of these envisaging having to work a further six to nine years.

Aon points out that an older workforce will have serious knock-on effects for Britain's employers, including increased costs from salaries, training, pensions and other benefits such as health insurance and wellness programmes. However, the non-financial benefits of retaining older employees ,such as retained knowledge and experience, may far outweigh these financial costs.

Richard Strachan, senior consultant at Aon Consulting says: "There has to be a real discussion in this country about the value older workers bring to the economy, and a shift in the thinking that we have to retire at a certain pre-conceived age. Already governments around the world are shifting the retirement age to later in life to reflect increasing levels of longevity, but employers need to match this with a positive attitude to workers older than the current retirement age.

 
He adds: "As pension savings become more of a hot topic, employers need to ensure, as part of both their ongoing duty of care and an ever increasing focus on plan governance, that they highlight to members how their plans are performing and, perhaps more importantly, why and where they can access up-to-date information.

Boardroom consultancy IDDAS launched a report today - "Women improve boardroom effectiveness" - offering an insight into the views of female directors of FTSE 100 companies.

IDDAS spoke to a fifth of women sitting on FTSE 100 boards, asking them what lay behind their success. Subjects covered included how women are recruited, how they broach difficult subjects, what holds them back, and the impact of being the only woman on the board.

Key findings include:

• Women are so rare at this level that they tend to operate under a constant spotlight, which drives them to perform exceptionally well
• Female directors are especially good at promoting teamwork on the board.
• Women are happy to raise tough issues, and are able to do so in a non-confrontational way
• Women tend to be less ego-driven than men, and committed to the organisation's goals, rather than their own agenda

The report concludes that the characteristics of successful women directors are:

• Social intelligence
• Courage and resilience
• Breath of view
• Energy and drive

Less helpful characteristics:

• Low self confidence
• Perfectionism
• Telling executives how to do their jobs
• Challenging and aggressive behaviour

Helen Pitcher, IDDAS chairman, said: "Women clearly add huge value to the boards they sit on. Organisations should be more creative in the way they evaluate the particaular combination of skills, experience and personal qualities and individual brings to the board."

Sandy Cotter, a psychologist and visiting fellow at Cranfield School of Management, says that it's possible to gauge someone's personality simply by looking at them - alarming news for anyone preparing for a job interview. Cotter has identified 5 main personality types, and has even outlined suitable jobs for each type:

Magical

Traits: creative, deep thinkers who are often good with money. Motivated by ideas rather than results.

Examples: Einstein, Richard Branson.

Jobs: Scientists, research and development, IT, design, innovative or creative roles. 

Romantics

I'm not sure anyone needed to go to the trouble to explode the myth that the UK is 'meritocratic' - one look at the new government would have shot that theory to pieces.

But Social Mobility Myths, a report published by think tank Civitas today, tells the political establishment: "we cannot hope to develop good policies if we ignore the key influence on the phenomenon we are hoping to change."

According to report author Peter Saunders, professor emeritus of sociology at the University of Sussex, four social mobility myths distort political debate and policy:

1. Britain is a 'closed shop society', in which life chances are heavily shaped by the class you were born into

2. Social mobility is getting worse, or has even 'ground to a halt'

3. Differences of ability between individuals are irrelevant in explaining the differential rates of success they achieve

4. Governments can increase mobility by top-down engineeering of the education system and forcing more income redistribution.

Much as I would like to agree with all of the above, I'm not sure I can. I have a horrible feeling that some people would prefer to see what they consider their 'social superiors' in certain jobs - particularly those involving government.