SWAM Looks at Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity

September is Smarter Workplace Awareness Month, which is dedicated to sharing information about how the science and practice of I-O psychology can improve worker well-being while creating more effective organizations. This week we look at diversity, inclusion, and equity, trend No. 2 in the 2020 SIOP Top 10 Workplace Trends.

Diversity, inclusion, and equity continue to be top considerations in the workplace, with an increasing focus on inclusion and equity. The recent attention on racial justice, along with the #MeToo movement, are examples of how these concerns can move from the workplace into the headlines, underscoring the need for organizations to create diverse, inclusive workplace cultures.

Continued efforts to advance representation of women and historically underrepresented ethnic groups, particularly in leadership, are increasingly joined by inclusion and equity considerations of LGBTQI employees, renewed attention to age and ageism, global diversity and immigration, and integration of workers with disabilities, including invisible disabilities and mental health. Extending workplace inclusion and removing barriers for neurodiverse individuals is a growing imperative.

The public increasingly scrutinizes equity in organizations, including pay gaps, income inequality, executive pay, and minimum wage. Improvements in workplace equity may also enhance employer brands and the ability to attract and retain talent.   

How I-O Psychologists Can Help

I-O psychologists can help organizations focus on inclusivity, identify exclusionary practices, design training on unconscious biases, and examine possible biases and effects on diversity and equal opportunity. 

Resources 

• Dr. Mindi Thompson shares this policy brief, Supporting Black Interns Through Vicarious Racial Trauma: Policy Recommendations for Employers and Postsecondary Institutions, which she authored with her colleagues at the Center for Research on College Workforce Transitions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
• McKenzie Preston and Dr. Sumona De Graaf highlight business benefits in the white paper, Benefits of Socioeconomic Diversity to Organizations: How Organizations Can Promote and Benefit From Socioeconomic Diversity.
• Dr. Kizzy Dominguez shares insights from practice and statistics about diversity, inclusion, and equality in this short video from the 2019 SIOP Conference.

Smarter Workplace Awareness Month and the SIOP Top 10 Workplace Trends are initiatives of the SIOP Visibility Committee. Share your thoughts about how the science and practice of I-O psychology can improve worker well-being while creating more effective organizations on social media using #SmarterWorkplace and #SIOPSmarterWorkplace.