Despite progress in workplace LGBTQ+ inclusion, 46 percent of LGBTQ+ employees are closeted at their job. Equitable policies and benefits are critical to LGBTQ+ inclusion in the workforce but alone are not sufficient to support a truly inclusive culture within a workplace. Employers recognize that beyond the letter of a policy, additional programming and educational efforts are necessary. Ultimately, businesses invest in organizational competency programs because policy does not equal practice.
Many large employers have formally recognized employee resource groups (also known as an employee network, business resource or affinity groups) for diverse populations of their workforce, including women, people of color, veterans, parents, people of varied abilities and LGBTQ+ & Allied people. These groups’ purpose is two-fold:
Businesses must demonstrate a firm-wide, sustained and accountable commitment to diversity and cultural competency, including at least four of the following elements and the integration of intersectionality concepts into a training or education offering (5 points):
To receive credit for this effort, a company must:
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To receive credit for this effort, a company must:
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To receive credit for this effort, a company must:
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Examples of these types of trainings include
Note: In order to receive credit for this effort, the training must include topics of sexual orientation or gender identity.
To receive credit for this effort, a company must:
More information:
To receive credit for this effort, a company must:
Choose "Yes" to affirm that your company integrates concepts of intersectionality into trainings, initiative, or other educational opportunities.
Upload sample materials from your training. This could be an agenda or outline defining learning outcomes, sample slides, facilitator guide or other material.
More information:
Intersectionality is the concept that individuals are oppressed based on multiple and intersecting identities. These axes of oppression “intersect” and reinforce each other. This is also known as "double" or "triple" oppression.
For more about the CEI and intersectionality, click here.
For more about intersectional approaches to diversity and inclusion work, click here.
Examples:
A lunch and learn for HR business partners on applying an intersectional lens to recruitment
A cross-programming event between the Pride and Black Employee ERGs on Black LGBTQ+
experiences
Including scenarios depicting examples of how your policies may apply to experiences of those who
are multiply marginalized (such as a Black queer woman or a disabled trans man) as a part of broader training.
NOTE: Integration of concepts of intersectionality is required for credit in this section. This can be a part of another training or as a stand alone educational offering.