PA life
PA life

UK employers ‘leading DE&I transformation in Europe’

UK employers are leading Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DE&I) transformation in comparison to most European companies.

That’s according to research conducted by GoodHabitz that considered answers from over 13,600 employees across 13 European countries. It shows employeesโ€™ desire to work for diverse and inclusive businesses, as well as employers striving to create equal and inclusive opportunities in workplaces.

Tim Segers, UK Director of GoodHabitz explained: โ€œWe were very interested to see that across many of the DE&I challenges that companies experience, the UKโ€™s efforts in addressing them were more visible compared to most other European countries.

โ€œFor example, almost 3 in 4 UK employees say itโ€™s important to work in an organisation that values diversity and inclusion, which is 7% higher than other European employees. Itโ€™s great to see that UK employers are trying to match the demand by striving to improve diversity and inclusion. Indeed, 68% of UK employees have noticed their companiesโ€™ efforts, which is 7% higher than our European counterpartsโ€.

The findings also indicate that in the UK, 71% of employees feel that people in their organisation are treated equally, which is also reflected in the gender pay gap, with 69% of respondents feeling that gender has no bearing on the salary of an employee. These statistics are lower in most European countries – 64% of employees feel they are treated equally, however, countries such as Poland (53%), France (55%) and Austria (57%) are lagging behind.

Segers continued: โ€œCreating an environment where employees can openly talk about their cultural differences should be one of the top priorities when setting a DE&I strategy, and UK employers are leading the way (70% vs Europeโ€™s 63%).

โ€œIt is important to note, however, that almost 1 in 10 people donโ€™t feel safe discussing these kinds of differences amongst their co-workers which shows that companies in all European regions have some ground to coverโ€.

In addition, the research shows that managers are instrumental in supporting and advocating DE&I strategies. Here, again, UK managers (77%) showed they are accepting of a mixture of cultural and ethnic backgrounds compared to 66% of European ones.

โ€œWhen focusing on DE&I, itโ€™s important to create a bias-free working environment. This can be achieved through a variety of channels. For instance, helping employees develop and learn the right soft skills to support a DE&I strategy and approach is essential.

โ€œIn fact, in the UK over 66% of employees agree that online courses help them develop soft skills. Only when employees become aware of the various layers of cultures, mental programming and cultural characteristics can they build a diversity mindset,โ€ concluded Segers.

The GoodHabitz Diversity & Inclusion Research Reportย will beย available to download in September on www.goodhabitz.com.