Has The COVID-19 Crisis Set Back Gender Equality?
The coronavirus pandemic transformed the world of work for everyone, but global data indicate it has mostly impacted women. While the COVID-19 crisis accelerated a number of trends, it hindered the progress of workplace diversity and gender equality, as decision-makers adopted outdated ways of working and old stereotypes were revived.
Women were almost twice as likely as men to lose their jobs during the pandemic, a report by the University of Exeter in the UK found. The findings were similar to research conclusions from the US and Canada that show women were more likely to have their working hours reduced in 2020. Data indicates this was either because the types of jobs and sectors in which they operate suffered the most and/or female workers were expected to perform more child care, home-schooling and housework responsibilities – all unpaid.
UK-based Janine Chamberlin, Senior Director at LinkedIn, reveals that her insights from countries around the world tell “a worryingly consistent story”: hiring of women falls when lockdown measures are brought in.
These developments should be a big concern for business leaders. Why? Greater diversity has been shown to improve productivity, innovation and company culture, which is especially important now as organizations seek to reduce the costs of job churn and new-staff training, and while attracting and retaining top talent is paramount to long-term success.
Crowe Global’s Art of Smart research from 2019 identified the benefits of diversity, and found that organizations that were the most diverse and bold in their policies achieved explosive growth in terms of revenue per employee – 3,680 percent on average, over five years.
If the COVID-19 crisis has set societies back on gender equality and diversity in the workplace, as various studies suggest, how will it shape the future of work? And what could – and should – business leaders do about it?
Experts warn that 50 years of progress could be put into reverse if businesses and governments don’t take action now. “We’re talking about a generational rollback,” says Sarah Ronan, Head of Operations at UK pregnancy and maternity discrimination charity Pregnant Then Screwed. “It took 23 years to see a 14 percent increase in maternal employment rates in the UK.”
She urges those in positions of power to make smart decisions and keep diversity goals in mind when hiring staff or making redundancies. If a rollback in gender diversity is allowed to go unchecked, then individuals, businesses, and society will all suffer. “Leaders should think about the long-term impact of reducing equality and diversity in the workplace by how they restructure now,” Ms Ronan says.
Duty of care in the workplace
This regression creates a “tricky situation” for businesses, suggests Hayley Sudbury, a vocal advocate of women and LGBT inclusion and Chief Executive Officer of Werkin, a multinational organization based in the US that connects mentors with mentees. Now more than ever, leaders have a “duty of care” to all employees, she argues. They must be more compassionate: ask questions, listen and find out what’s going on in employees’ lives, away from work.
There are no simple solutions, but the first thing business leaders must do is recognize the issue. Practical tips include being sensitive to staff needs and focusing on what work is achieved, rather than being rigid about working hours. Organizations need to look at their policies and structures and ensure they are as flexible, open, and inclusive as possible.
Businesses that are diverse and inclusive will emerge from the pandemic in the strongest position. Loubna Bouarfa, Chief Executive Officer and founder of Okra Technologies, a UK-based company that provides AI solutions for life sciences, and which was named the best female-led start-up at the Startup Europe Awards, says having a diverse team prevents your workplace from having “tunnel vision.”
“Every one of us is in a little bubble, we’re stuck in our own area,” she says. “Sometimes we can’t see the whole picture. [Having a diverse team] helps us not to get blinded by our own vision and overconfidence.”
Doubling down on diversity agenda
There are many benefits to nurturing a diverse workforce and leadership team – many studies, including The Art of Smart’s aforementioned 2019 report, prove that the more diverse an organization is, the more innovation is generated and the healthier the bottom line. Increasingly, those businesses that drive a diversity agenda are being recognized and rewarded, through greater custom and a higher reputation for fairness and progression inside and outside of their industry and region.
For example, in July 2020, two months after the killing of George Floyd in America that triggered anti-racism riots around the world, Lloyds Banking Group’s efforts to promote more Black employees to senior roles was classed as “credit positive” by Moody’s Investors Service. It marked the first time that the rating agency has explicitly linked a company’s stability to diversity measures. Lloyds, the UK’s leading bank by current accounts, had announced a race action plan after promising to “do more” to promote equality in response to global protests that erupted following Mr. Floyd’s death. Moody’s said that the measures were “credit positive because they will improve staff diversity at all levels and reduce Lloyds’ exposure to social risk.”
A growing list of organizations and authorities are doubling down on their diversity agenda and earning worldwide plaudits for hitting their goals. In September, the Brazilian Football Confederation announced it would pay men and women the same amount for representing the national team. The South American nation remains one of the few countries to make such a pledge – but it’s likely that the number will have grown significantly by the end of 2021.
Marcelo Claure, the Bolivian-American Chief Executive Officer of SoftBank Group and founder of Brightstar Corporation, the largest Hispanic-owned organization in US history, earned global praise in late 2020 when he made a move to improve diversity through disruptive investing. He launched the US$100 million SB Opportunity Fund, dedicated to “supporting and building a community of outstanding Black, Latinx and Native American founders.”
Telecommunications leader Vodafone is one of a number of progressive businesses that in 2020 realized the urgent need to boost its diversity agenda. The company plans to increase flexibility with a greater emphasis on remote working, meaning that they can open up opportunities to new employees who might have missed out in the past because of their location or other barriers. This builds on Vodafone’s longstanding commitment to create an inclusive and diverse workforce.
“We’re proud of the progress we’re making through our policies that support diversity and inclusion,” says Vodafone’s Group Chief HR Officer, Leanne Wood. “The COVID-19 crisis has further highlighted the importance of inclusion, engagement and flexibility for our people, and we have offered additional support for well-being and balancing caretaking responsibilities during this challenging time.”
Offering a final word of expert advice, LinkedIn’s Ms. Chamberlin acknowledges that if business leaders address the issue of diversity now, it could transform the workplace for the better. Ignore it, and the future of work will be less diverse, interesting, and successful – and we will all pay the price. “Businesses and the global economy are going through their biggest revolution in recent history. Organizations now have the opportunity to rebuild fairer and more inclusive workplaces,” she adds.
Jason Lenz, a tax specialist who worked at Crowe MacKay LLP in Canada from September 2016 to January 2021, revealed his transition to Crowe colleagues in 2020 and his confidence has been boosted by the positive reaction
I went to HR and they asked me what I needed. We had that conversation and they said they would order me a name plate and have IT update my name, inform my coworkers, and support my transition. The Canadian government has a good guide on how to transition in the workplace so we started there and built from that. It was seamless; they really planned it out and tried hard to get it right. Coming out in the workplace as a transgender person is terrifying – there's no guarantee it will go well. But I felt supported and appreciated.
It feels great to work for an inclusive company. We’ve always had great diversity, with female partners and people of color, for example. It’s strong, diverse, and I enjoy being part of that diversity and being able to be authentic. You can bring your whole self to work. Being able to be “me” is extremely rewarding and, honestly, I feel like I’m a better worker. I feel like I’m more efficient and less distracted. Pretending to be something you're not takes energy – it takes you away from getting the job done efficiently and effectively. Inclusivity can change that.
Employers need to educate themselves about diversity. It could be trans rights, racial inclusivity, working parents. You have to break down the barriers before you can let people in. You have to create a safe space. If you create these barriers – or don’t realize they exist – there’s talent you will never have that will go somewhere else. You’re eliminating some aspect of growth."
