Category: Diversity & Inclusion

Diversity and inclusion (D&I) is an important and ongoing strategy of any HR plan. Ensuring that your company supports hiring, engaging, and retaining diverse workers with varied backgrounds will set your company up for long-term success and an increased bottom line. This topic offers the latest strategies for talent management, key insights from diversity leaders, case studies on D&I in the workplace, and more.

For Better DEI, Understand the Why

Nearly a year of seemingly continuous layoffs throughout the tech industry have harmed Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) efforts, raising concerns about the vulnerability of recent DEI gains in the workplace. To ensure DEI initiatives are not only continued but strengthened, we must understand the total value they bring, to employees and employers alike. DEI […]

Reasonable Accommodations in Job Interviews

Question Are we required to provide American Sign Language (ASL) or English-language interpreters for candidates in job interviews? If so, who pays? Answer Not necessarily, but you are required to reasonably accommodate candidates with disabilities, including candidates who are deaf. Reasonable accommodations can include sign language interpreters but can also include written materials produced in […]

DEI Initiatives “Not For The Weary,” But Rewards are Great

DEI programs have evolved considerably in scope and complexity in recent years. What were once often derided as PR efforts paying lip service to the objectives of DEI have developed into sophisticated efforts touching virtually all aspects of the organization and managed by a dedicated team of committed professionals. Tiara Chesmer-Williams, Head of Inclusion, Diversity […]

Lifelong Passion Leads to Opportunity for Change

So many of the diversity and inclusion leaders we meet through our series on DEI leaders took circuitous, unexpected routes toward their roles. They stumbled into DEI leadership positions through twists of fate and happenstance. Erin Mitchell Richeson, vice president of inclusion and diversity (I&D) for Cox Enterprises and the subject of this installment of our series […]

Encouraging Diversity While Avoiding Divisiveness

Employer focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), however well intentioned, needs to be handled properly, or it may have a detrimental effect on the workforce. While many employers promote DEI as “the right thing to do,” it’s essential for DEI success and acceptance that the right thing isn’t done the wrong way. Factors to […]

Implications of Changes in the PUMP Act

Breast milk can be incredibly important for a baby’s health, making the ability to express milk while at work a top priority for new mothers.  The PUMP Act provides nursing mothers the right to take breaks and to have a place to express milk during the workday. This right extends for one year after the birth […]

Intersectionality’s Role in the Workplace: Fostering Inclusion Needs for All

Intersectionality is a term that describes how different aspects of a person’s identity intersect and interact. It recognizes that individuals aren’t defined by a single identity but rather by multiple identities that can include race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, ability, and many other factors. In the workplace, intersectionality is crucial for promoting inclusion for all employees, […]

The Changing Landscape of Employment Discrimination Prevention in 2023

Change is in the air: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) are adjusting their standard policies and operations to reflect the realities of the current labor market. For example, the EEOC and OFCCP must ensure that emerging artificial intelligence (AI) technologies don’t lead to employment discrimination […]

NLRB

NLRB Extends NLRA Protection to Discussions of Race in the Workplace

The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Office of the General Counsel publicly issued on February 27, 2023 an Advice Memorandum confirming the agency’s view that workplace discussions about racism are protected concerted activity under Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA). The memo is significant in that it demonstrates that the current NLRB considers retaliation […]

Ilina Ewen: Born into the Role of a Diversity Leader

Our subject for this installment of our ongoing series on chief diversity officers and other diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) leaders is someone who says she was “born into” the field of diversity and inclusion (D&I). Ilina Ewen, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility at Samet Corporation, a North Carolina-based construction firm, has leveraged her […]