Britannia Building Society counter staff receive extra pay if they can speak
another language which enables them to communicate with customers from
different ethnic backgrounds.
The language pay rewards scheme was introduced as a result of meetings of
Britannia’s staff forum on race, set up to improve the diversity of the
workforce.
Britannia, which recently came second in the race category of the Business
in the Community Awards, has also established focus groups to promote women and
those with disabilities.
Pauline Gibson, HR account manager for Britannia, said the company had
started the focus groups to ensure Britannia’s work culture fully embraced
diversity.
She said Britannia wanted to reflect the diversity of the local community in
the staff it employed. "It is important that we are meeting the needs of
all of our members. It is about the fact that we believe in something. It is
more than an initiative, we want to integrate diversity as part of every day
life."
Britannia has re-designed its company logo to highlight the firm’s equal
opportunities approach after a suggestion by the focus group on race.
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Britannia, which is a member of the Employers’ Network on Disability, regularly
accepts people with disabilities on placements from the employment service and
employ them where possible in full-time positions.
Karen Moir, Britannia’s director of organisational development, said the
firm’s focus group on women in the workforce had identified a need to promote
more women into senior managerial positions.
