Hiring and retaining an employee base that honors diversity and inclusion can include these five steps.

Gender discrimination in the workplace has been affecting women and underrepresented minorities for decades, but has become even more critical today as racial disparities across multiple systems are at the heart of global protests.

“Gender discrimination in the #workplace has been affecting women and underrepresented minorities for decades, but has become even more critical today. #RacialEquity #GenderParity”

About her 2016 book, Women Matter: The Why and How of Gender Diversity in Financial Services, Daralee Barbera, co-author, tells Forbes, “A persistent obstacle is that our profession is primarily white, male, and older.”

Many organizations are working on gender diversity but there is still a long way to go. In their 2019 report, McKinsey & Company conclude there has been little progress in the representation of women in the C-suite, with only a 24 percent increase in the financial sector.

“ @McKinsey conclude there has been little progress in the #representation of women in the C-suite, with only a 24 percent increase in the financial sector. #WomenInBusiness”

This most recent report also shows only a five percent improvement in the participation of women at the manager level and only a five percent increase in the participation of women of color, and an eight percent increase in the sponsorship of women.

It is well reported and understood that companies benefit from recruiting and retaining women employees and minorities. Diverse teams with innovative minds help to come up with the best products and more money in the long run.

As COVID-19 restructures all workplace systems, and the call for social justice and equity amplify, there is an urgent need to create workplace fairness and equity across gender, race and cultures. The need to move toward equity and inclusion is even more important.

“As #COVID19 restructures all workplace systems, and the call for social justice and equity amplify, there is an urgent need to create #workplace fairness and equity across gender, race and cultures.”

Here are five steps toward gender and racial fairness in the workplace.

1. Set up an unbiased performance evaluation system.

According to Fairygodboss, a recent study of Google employees reveals a female employee’s sentiments. “There is a definite bias towards men being promoted and in senior leadership positions vs. women. Even though they have great policies, culture, and all, it's still very male-dominated in the top management.”

In order to prove that women employees matter to your company, set up a clear, honest, fair, and transparent performance evaluation system so that women and minorities have equal opportunity when it comes to promotions and hikes. The evaluation criteria must be simple and easily understandable by everyone. Only those performance evaluation tools need to be used that give measurable results. A rating system is a good way to evaluate employee performance. However, that rating system should be fair and based on open-ended work assessment.

“Set up a clear, honest, fair, and transparent performance evaluation system so that women and minorities have equal opportunity when it comes to promotions and hikes. #Leadership #GenderParity”

2. Give enough opportunity to compete for managerial position.

When women look at senior management, there are few female employees. “Women often come to organizations and outperform at the entry-level. The challenge comes three to five years in when women look up and see no female leaders. There’s no one to tell them how to get there; this is the path to their success,” writes Stephen Denny, director of human resources, diversity, and inclusion at Putnam Investments, on LinkedIn.

Women must get the requisite training and work experience to be prepared for senior management roles. They need high-profile projects, leadership training, and sponsorship to get an opportunity for working in the top management.

“Give enough opportunity to compete for managerial positions. Women need high-profile projects, #leadershiptraining, and sponsorship to get an opportunity for working in the top management. ”

3. Support all women to voice their opinions.

It’s not possible to assume what all women want from the macro level. If as a leader you want to show that women and underrepresented voices are appreciated in the organization, then give them a platform to voice their opinions. A 30-minute one-on-session is a beginning to understand what they want and aspire to do. Ask managers to hold these sessions once every two weeks. Ask them to prepare detailed reports based on employee grievances, problems, concerns, and stories. Formulate and change employee policies based on those reports.

“If as a #leader you want to show that women and underrepresented voices are appreciated in the organization, then give them a platform to voice their opinions. #SupportWomen”

4. Implement employee-friendly policies for all.

Many women—and men—shoulder multiple responsibilities of childcare, elder care and more. Work from home options, flexible working hours, paid maternity leave, paid parental leave, childcare benefits, sabbaticals for taking care of sick family members, are a few options that can make employees feel valued.

“Implement employee-friendly policies for all as women—and men—shoulder multiple responsibilities of childcare, elder care and more. #PaidLeave #WorkFromHome”

According to the Google study, one employee reported, “I'm a mom and I feel that it would be very different for me to try to have the impact I have at work right now and be a happy mom in another company. I've been able to schedule flex hours so I can spend more time with my son and can work from home whenever necessary for childcare reasons. It's a great place to work and raise a family.”

5. Pay fairly.

In the last few years, the gender pay gap has narrowed, but dropped by $0.07. In 2020, each working woman earns $0.81 for every dollar a man makes, with even more difficult gaps for Black and Latina women. Equal pay structures for both men and women working under the same designation are required. The gender pay gap is one of the reasons why single mothers and women are lagging behind men on the financial front. Since they earn less than men, they suffer more when it comes to paying off credit card debts, paying school fees, managing household expenses, paying insurance premiums, and monthly rents.

“Pay fairly. In 2020, each working woman earns $0.81 for every dollar a man makes, with even more difficult gaps for Black and Latina women. #PayGap #GenderGap”

Aiden White is a financial writer who lives in Dudley, Massachusetts, and has been associated with consolidatecreditcard.org since 2018. Through her writing, she has inspired people to overcome their credit card debt problems and solve their personal finance based queries. aidenwhitejoe@gmail.com. @aidenwhitejoe

The Right Moves Now: 5 Tips For Hiring, Retaining For Gender, Racial Fairness

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