Building a foundation of respect - Part 13 | BuildForce Canada

Building a foundation of respect - Part 13


Respectful Workplaces Blog - advice, research, tools, checklists. The Canadian construction industry is building respectful and inclusive workplaces for a strong future.

Welcome to the BuildForce blog on Respectful Workplaces! Here we explore issues and provide advice, research, tools, and checklists – everything our industry needs to create respectful and inclusive workplaces where everyone can succeed. Who will benefit? Leaders, managers, HR staff, and anyone who wants to understand how to create and support a Respectful and Inclusive Workplace. To meet the challenges of the 21st century, the Canadian construction and maintenance industry must be able to recruit and retain workers with a diversity of backgrounds such as Indigenous people, women, immigrants, and young workers. This means building respectful, safe and inclusive workplaces where all workers can succeed. Some of these challenges are: A quarter of a million skilled workers retiring over the next decade. Increased globalization demands more awareness of different cultures. The changing needs of a changing workforce. Increased demands for corporate social responsibility such as fairness and equity.

What can an effective Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Program deliver? The BuildForce Canada Respectful Workplace Online Assessment Tool ~ Release date - late 2018 ~ The Respectful Workplace Assessment Tool allows organization leadership to assess their progress toward a Respectful and Inclusive Workplace and benchmark their progress confidentially against other construction organizations.Each month we will feature an "Assessment question of the month."  So make sure to be a regular visitor! Assessment question of the month: Do you have a Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Plan or set of objectives? Watch for the release of the BuildForce Canada Online Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Toolkit, including The Respectful Workplace Online Assessment Tool: to assist organization leadership in assessing their current situation and identifying where they may need to make changes; The Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Training Course: to train workers on how to create and support a respectful and inclusive workplace; and The Respectful Workplace Policy Framework and Implementation Guide: to assist organizations in creating and implementing a policy that supports a respectful and inclusive workplace.

Research shows that an effective Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Program contributes to the bottom line

  • Better financial performance: In a global study across all business sectors, 90% of the executives reported seeing a connection between diversity and their company's success.

  • Higher brand loyalty: 71% of LGBT individuals and % of respondents idenfiying as allies consider a company's support for LGBT equality when purchasing.

  • Employees in a "speak-up" culture are three and a half times as likely to contribute their full innovative potential.

  • Leaders who give diverse voices equal airtime are nearly twice as likely as other leaders to unleash value-driving insights.

Pressing for progress

Research has shown that barriers – visible and invisible – in recruitment, retention, and promotion may be excluding well-qualified women from full participation in skilled trades careers. (See Blog #7 for more about barriers to women in skilled trades.)

It’s often difficult for organization leaders to see the barriers. In a study of 44 multinational firms, the Boston Consulting Group found that management often saw their diversity initiatives through "rose-coloured glasses." The study highlighted one company as an example: management believed that it’s promotion processes were transparent and neutral, but only 18% of women and 40% of men in the company believed their employer’s staffing processes were gender-neutral.

INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY, MARCH 8, 2018, WE CELEBRATE THE TRADESWOMEN OF THE CANADIAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY, Women in skilled trades represent approximately  4% of the Canadian construction skilled trades workforce.  This number has remained relatively unchanged over the past 25 years.

OUR NEXT INSTALLMENT: The link between an organization's core values and a Respectful and Inclusive Workplace.

PREVIOUS INSTALLMENT: The benefits of mentorship

Read from the beginning. Click here to start at Part 1.

Resources:

Join the conversation: Would a Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Plan benefit your organization? Leave your comments below.

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This project has been funded by Status of Women Canada.