It is a business school cliché that “you cannot manage what you cannot measure”. Employers who are serious about equal opportunities will know that they ought to be measuring what is going on in their workplaces in terms of equality.
Positive discrimination is illegal, but positive action may be required to stop organisations becoming “male, pale and stale”. And while no-one likes to talk in terms of “quotas”, managers should know what proportion of their workforce is female and non-white, and how many people at work describe themselves as having a disability. Pay levels should be studied closely. Are people getting equal pay for equal work done? Are women getting the opportunity to work flexibly, or are they being pushed down a “mummy track”? Managers should also know about the age profile of their workforce, and be clear that sexual and racial harassment of any kind is intolerable.
Only when these “hygiene factors” are in place can employees feel confident that equal opportunities exist for all.
