Creating a diverse workforce - Factsheet

Why is diversity at work important for businesses?

1. Helps to attract talent

By recognising the importance of equality, diversity and inclusion, employers have the opportunity to access a much wider talent pool and recruit people with a broader range of backgrounds and skills.

2. Enhances corporate reputation

Ensuring a diverse workforce helps businesses to build a strong employer brand and establish credibility with both customers and employees. Research consistently shows that people want to feel valued at work and work for employers who have a reputable overall image and engage in impressive employment practices.

3. Improves business performance

Being open to diversity, inclusion and equality leads to enhanced innovation, creativity, productivity, engagement and business results, helping organisations find new ways of addressing challenges and attracting a more diverse range of customers.

So what can employers do to ensure their workforce is diverse and inclusive?

Introduce an effective EDI (Equality, Diversity & Inclusion) strategy

An employer’s EDI strategy should go beyond legal compliance and seek to add value to their organisation by contributing to the wellbeing and equality of outcomes for all employees.  The strategy should be developed using the lived experiences of marginalised staff and should address a wide range of personal characteristics and experiences.

Monitor workforce diversity and adapt the strategy as required

Managing diversity and developing a culture of inclusion is a continuous process of improvement, not a one-off initiative.  To identify both barriers and solutions, employers should collect data to track their workforce diversity, and commit to addressing under-representation across the protected characteristics at all levels of the organisation. Monitoring the diversity of the workforce in this way will also help to highlight any gender, race and disability pay gaps that may exist so that these can be addressed and narrowed.  Employers should ensure their EDI policies remain up-to-date with the latest legal developments and review them regularly through checks, audits and consultation.

Make sure jobs and development opportunities are flexible enough to encourage diversity

Job design – and particularly flexible working – should be important components of diversity strategies and part of attracting and retaining a wide pool of talented people.

Employers can help to increase the diversity of their workforce by focusing on accountability and transparency, ensuring that merit, competence and potential are the basis for all decisions about recruitment and development, and being alert to the influence of conscious and unconscious biases.

Equip managers with the tools they need to foster an inclusive working environment

It is vital that employers train all staff to understand and engage with EDI in how they do their jobs and work with colleagues. EDI should be embedded in performance management frameworks and all managers’ roles, along with guidelines and training for line managers to help them respond appropriately to diversity needs. Where possible, businesses should be linking diversity management to other initiatives such as such as Investors in People (IIP), BSI 76000 Valuing People and ISO 9001 Quality Management.

Be disability confident

Employers should look to instill confidence across their teams about managing disabled colleagues or those with a long-term health condition, from recruitment and induction through to training, development and progression. By identifying appropriate workplace changes or adjustments to support team members with an impairment or health condition, they can help them reach their full potential and thrive at work.

Where can I find advice and resources for employers?

Working to reduce pay gaps is one part of becoming a Fair Work employer. In Wales, fair work is defined as employment which meets these six principles:

• Reward your employees fairly
• Ensure your employees’ voices are heard
• Ensure security and flexibility for your workforce
• Give your employees opportunities for access, growth and progression
• Create a safe & inclusive working environment
• Respect your workers’ legal rights

There’s a wealth of online tools to help you implement these principles across you organisation but we know that navigating your way through all the information can be a challenge so check out our full guides for tips, advice and links to free resources.

Financial support may be available to make reasonable adjustments for disabled staff, for more information see our toolkit on disabled people’s employment here or contact dpec@gov.wales.