Pioneering charter will improve working conditions for LGBT+ staff

A number of national retailers, public sector services, local businesses and education institutions are coming together with LGBT+ charity Manchester Pride to put inclusion and equality at the forefront of their organisations.

This list, which is made up of organisations that will be the very first to beta test the charity’s new All Equals Charter, includes Manchester Metropolitan University, Enterprise Rent-a-Car Greater Manchester, Auto Trader UK, UKFast, Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, Tameside Council and Tameside & Glossop CCG.

National statistics show that a third of LGBT+ employees have hidden their LGBT+ status at work for fear of discrimination, and research carried out by the charity over the past year has revealed that more than 40% of LGBT+ people in Manchester have faced discriminitation, so Manchester Pride has launched an initiative to enable organisations to combat these figures by creating inclusive environments for LGBT+ people to thrive within.

The charity has produced the All Equals Charter to help create a consistent approach to diversity and inclusion across the region.

It will help businesses and organisations to understand how to recognise and challenge any form of discrimination through the provision of a thought-through support system guiding them to achieve a truly diverse, inclusive and equal workplace.

The charity’s rigorous consultation process has left it to recognise the diversity and multitude of experiences within LGBT+ communities and that some LGBT+ people face discrimination and inequality based on characteristics additional to their gender identity and sexuality.

The All Equals Charter has a keen focus on intersectionality to ensure that it tackles all forms of discrimination in the workplace.

Mark Fletcher, chief executive for Manchester Pride, said: “We believe that everyone deserves their whole selves to be accepted without exception.

“During our initiaial reserch period we discovered that LGBT+ people in Greater Manchester are experienceing alarming levels of discrimination against other protected characteristics in addition to their sexual orientation in spaces deemed to be safe for LGBT+ people.

“We wanted to do something about it.

“In developing what has now become The All Equals Charter we have created a platform for us to work with businesses and organisations across Greater Manchester to take a look at everything from their procedures and policies relating to discrimination, to the training and education offered to their workforces, to create the optimum environment for LGBT+ people to thrive, whether this be at work or at play.”

Helen Robinson, divesity and inclusion and community engagement manager from Auto Trader UK, said: “Auto Trader is proud to partner with Manchester Pride.

“We believe diversity and inclusion is at the core of creating an excellent culture within the workplace and have worked hard, ourselves, to create the culture we have today.

“We are excited to join Manchester Pride’s new ‘All Equals Charter’ and collaborate with organisations and members across Greater Manchester for the benefit of our colleagues, our customers and our communities.”

Stuart McKenna, equality and diversity manager, human resources & organisational development directorate, Manchester Metropolitan University, said: “We are absolutely delighted to be involved in the development of the Manchester Pride All Equals Chartermark.

“The university has a longstanding and positive partnership with Manchester Pride through our annual support for the Manchester Pride parade, and throughout the year with our support of Superbia, Pride’s year-round calendar of cultural events.

“We hope that our involvement with the charter will help the university build on some exciting work we have already undertaken and allow us to showcase some of this work and share some of our good practice with other charter participants.”

Those who sign up will be given access to a members’ area of the charter website where they will have access to a digital toolkit to guide them through the process.

The next step will be for the Manchester Pride team to conduct a ‘health check’ for the organisation and provide feedback and suggestions for an action plan.

This will culminate in a full assurance review to receive accreditation. The whole process should take approximately 10-12 weeks for an organisation to complete.

The All Equals Charter will launch in early 2020 and will be open to any business or organisation operating within the region.