Rights Here, Rights Now
by Jacqui Smith, People Management & CIPD
The government wants a society where every individual is able to achieve their potential, free from prejudice and discrimination. Every person is entitled to respect and dignity in the course of their daily lives, and that applies particularly to the workplace.
As readers of PM will know, the government has been working in partnership with business on tackling all discrimination at work, be it based on race, sex, age, disability, religion, belief or sexual orientation.
By tackling the prejudice that prevents individual success, we benefit not only the individual, but the employer and society as a whole.
That is why we are bringing forward a bill to establish a Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR). It will, for the first time, draw together in one body the three pillars of law and social policy – equality, human rights and the promotion of good relations between different groups. It will have the power and authority to deliver an equality guarantee for all.
The new commission will bring specific benefits to employees and work closely with employers to advance equality and human rights. Businesses already recognise that they cannot afford to cast onto the scrapheap some of our most experienced, skilled and valuable people on grounds of prejudice – whether deliberate or through a lack of understanding.
The CEHR will help employers to better understand discrimination law and the business benefits of diversity, through expert advice covering all areas of the law. Equally, employers will be able to help the CEHR to understand the pressures and needs of business.
At present, our economy is one in which the labour market struggles to meet the demands of business for a skilled workforce. Conversely, the US economy was founded on a strong supply of immigrant labour and grows, year in, year out, on a continued inflow of skilled individuals.
The UK and the EU do not have that same level of immigration. We must therefore best use those who could make and, in so many cases, wish to make a larger contribution – be they carers, parents, the many members of our black and minority ethnic communities who struggle to find work, or those retired from work.
The government has made progress across a range of equality and diversity issues and introduced new laws that address discrimination. We have worked with businesses to place work-life balance issues at the centre of the debate on work and caring, and have kick-started a dialogue between government and business, employer and employee, on flexible working. Combining work and caring responsibilities is now at the top of the HR agenda and is used by good employers to recruit and retain the best people.
On race, through the Race Relations Amendment Act, we have introduced laws placing a duty on public bodies to promote equality and to foster good relations between different racial groups. On disability, we introduced new legislation last October outlawing discrimination by employers against disabled people in all aspects of employment. We have also extended protection to employees against discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation, religion and belief.
And, with a rapidly ageing population, we are working towards legislation to outlaw age discrimination in employment and vocational training.
I am very proud of the progress we have made, but there is more to be done. Much has changed in Britain since the 1970s, when the first race and equality laws were introduced to make race and sex discrimination unlawful. And significant challenges lie ahead. The minority ethnic population accounts for 8 per cent of the total UK population and is rising.
By 2014, there will be more people over 65 than under 16 in the UK. There are more than 10 million disabled people still working to secure full rights in education, employment, transport and services, and we will all still be struggling to balance the demands of work and family. But we need to remember that it is discrimination that is the issue, not the communities who face it.
For these reasons, we need a new, authoritative and independent voice against discrimination and for social justice. But the CEHR cannot tackle these issues alone. It must harness the expertise already present in industry and share and encourage best practice.
The new equality body needs to develop close partnerships with business and employers. It will help business to attract and retain employees from diverse backgrounds. It will also bring equality and diversity into the mainstream of working practice, placing it firmly at the top of the HR agenda.
