business matters

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

Harry Sherrard

Principal Sherrards

As an economic migrant myself – I was born and raised in Northern Ireland – equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is a subject on which I have abundant personal perspective. But from attending an English university at age 18, through Law School, to becoming a partner in a Sussex law firm, to establishing my own practice in 1999, I have had few negative experiences. By and large I have been accepted by and integrated into the Home Counties. So much so that an old friend recently discussed with me “our” prospects in the Six Nations; until I reminded him that I am not English!

But that does not apply to everyone. Many employees have experienced prejudice in the workplace, and the last decade or so has seen constant developments to counter this. A matrix of anti-discrimination laws was consolidated into The Equality Act in 2010. This Act sets out a number of “protected characteristics” such as gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation, pregnancy and disability, and gives legal protection to employees against detrimental treatment on those grounds.

Much of our anti-discrimination legislation was influenced by our membership of the European Union, but plenty was home grown as well. It’s not often mentioned that the UK was the first country in Europe to outlaw disability discrimination in the workplace. The Disability Discrimination Act was passed by the John Major government in 1995, without this being a requirement of the EU at the time. Other European countries then followed the UK’s lead.

Other examples of legislation intended to promote equality in the last few years include extensions of flexible working rights, gender pay gap reporting, shared parental leave, paternity leave, and antimodern slavery legislation.

It’s a controversial subject, but employers are increasingly aware of the dangers of unconscious bias and have introduced training on the subject. Through social conditioning and life experiences, our brains make automatic assumptions about people’s strengths and weaknesses. This can lead to both legal dangers and a risk of missing good candidates for jobs.

A relatively recent addition to the anti-discrimination legislation was age. We are shortly to reach a milestone; 10 years since employees could be compulsorily retired. Employers used to be able to force workers to retire at 65 (known as the Default Retirement Age), but this law was scrapped in April 2011. Since then, employees can continue working, effectively indefinitely, unless the occupation has a retirement age set by other legislation, as is the case with pilots. As always when there is a change in the law, there is concern and indeed some resistance. I recall employers 10 years ago expressing concern that employees older than 65 would have neither the physical capacity nor the ambition to be as productive as younger colleagues. In those conversations I took to reminding clients that Sir Winston Churchill first became Prime Minister in May 1940 shortly before his 66th birthday! As a 65 year old, his best years were still in front of him.

Attitudes to age have certainly changed over recent decades. The miners’ strike of 1984 took place when I was at university. The miners’ leader, Arthur Scargill, ardent trade unionist and doyen of workers’ rights, disparagingly referred to the Chairman of the National Coal Board, the 72 year old Ian MacGregor, as “the elderly American” and said that “I am not prepared to accept the imposition of a pensioner from the United States”. Back then, no-one took much notice, but today those remarks would be considered both ageist and racist.

Perhaps influenced by this, Ian MacGregor later became an active campaigner against ageism in employment, and he was still working aged 85 when he died. Part of his legacy is that, like him, employees can now choose to work on into later life if they choose to do so.

Sherrards is a leading specialist employment law firm, providing employment law advisory services, HR consultancy and employment related training.

www.sherrardslaw.com

Now’s the time to invest in your staff’s future

Times are tough and companies across all sectors are facing difficult decisions. But at the Chichester College Group, we believe that at times of crisis it is more important than ever to nurture your workforce.

Paul Rolfe

Director of Commercial, Sales, Marketing & Public Affairs Chichester College Group

Your staff are your biggest asset, so why wouldn’t you equip them with all the tools they need to excel in their roles?

After all, an investment in your staff is an investment in your company’s future. The more you invest in your staff, the greater the dividend your company will receive in the form of higher performing teams, increased motivation and higher retention rates.

And at Chichester College Group, we can offer you a range of training products and resources to help you build the right training package for your team.

Reasons to choose Chichester College Group

Location, Location, Location

The Chichester College Group is the biggest college group in Sussex, with campuses at five locations across West Sussex; Chichester, Crawley, Worthing, Haywards Heath and Brinsbury (near Pulborough).

We are proud to have developed and maintain close ties to our local industries, employers and organisations, ensuring we have an in-depth understanding of the training needs of West Sussex and beyond.

And because we have colleges across the county, you’ll never be far from one of our campuses for in-person support.

Shape the Future

We are proud to work with more than 1,500 employers of all sizes and across a range of industries.

We build strong links with our employer partners, actively involving them in course design to ensure we’re delivering the expertise that industry needs. Our courses are reviewed regularly, reflecting professional trends and we employ experienced industry specialists to teach our subjects.

Outstanding Apprenticeship Delivery

The Chichester College Group offers apprenticeship programmes across a range of occupations and levels, including operations manager, digital support technician, HR support and commercial procurement

At our colleges, you can be assured your staff will be receiving the very best training delivered by industry experts. According to Government figures published in 2020, we have the highest achievement rates for apprenticeships in Sussex and Hampshire – and our apprenticeship provision was recognised by Ofsted as Outstanding in May 2020! Apprenticeships are a cost-effective and successful way to develop your staff’s skills and knowledge base. This will help you to resolve skills shortages and expand your team’s talent – without the need to recruit new staff.

There’s no age limit for an apprentice – staff of any age can be an apprentice, without any changes to their salary or job title.

You can also use your apprenticeship levy to fully fund apprenticeship training for existing staff, with no cost to your company. So, why wouldn’t you want to use this opportunity to bring about positive change in your workplace?

Quality Assured Training

As one of the largest training providers in Sussex, we offer a wide variety of opportunities designed to support you and your employees including professional and trade courses.

All of our professional courses are accredited by the UK’s industry-leading awarding bodies, including AAT, CIM, CIPD, CIPS and ILM. This gives you the assurance you need to know your employees will gain the in-depth knowledge and skills they need to succeed.

We are also one of the largest providers of trade and construction courses in the South East, working with industry experts including NICEIC, City & Guilds and OFTEC to ensure employees receive the right certification and training.