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Gender equality
Practice meets perfect
May/June 2023 issue

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Wellbeing
Opinion

Why representing diversity at work could lead to sound, risk-based choices

Open-access content Friday 18th May 2018
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 3 years old.

Programmes are already in place to raise staff awareness and I am particularly interested in how we support our 48,000 members and 1,100 volunteers.

Promoting E&D brings balance; it encourages us to learn about different cultures and from each other, which is important to IOSH as a global membership organisation.

When E&D is promoted in the right way, people with different approaches collaborate more, listen more and become more tolerant. E&D encourages information sharing, problem solving and makes us all better communicators. These are qualities that stand us in good stead in our roles as OSH professionals, so it is right for IOSH to support members in being truly inclusive.

E&D also enables us to find and retain the best talent. A diverse organisation is more likely to have a culture of fairness and a healthy work-life balance. Healthy organisations are more likely to be productive organisations that are more profitable. Many organisations are asked about the diversity of project groups when they seek collaborations or tender for work. Stakeholders recognise diverse enterprises tend to be more flexible and able to respond to environmental change.

True equality is not about taking opportunities away from one group to give them to another. It means having an equal voice, opportunities and rights. This isn't easy. It's possible for an organisation to aim for diversity but achieve the opposite. Employers must look constantly at the organisational make-up and keep it a mixing pot with the right amount of openness and inclusivity.

No one wants to be told what to do, or how to do it. Creating a diverse and equal culture comes from mutual respect and good management. A strong message can always be delivered with respect, kindness and positivity.

True equality is not about taking opportunities away from one group to give them to another

It's essential for organisations to have a supportive, open culture and for people to know to whom they can talk when confronted with unacceptable behaviour. There must be a process to raise concerns in a non-threatening manner, free from reprisal. Organisations may need to examine themselves to ensure they have such processes. Without them, diversity cannot be achieved because people will leave before they are given the opportunity to make a difference.

In recent research commissioned by IOSH in the Republic of Ireland, the presence of trade unions was associated with higher levels of reporting inequality or unfair treatment (bit.ly/2k5mnVq). Reporting structures are important, so anyone experiencing ill treatment can be heard. This matters to us as OSH practitioners because poor workplace environments lead to mental health risk which leads to physical ill health.

To encourage change we have to change ourselves. We must recognise our own potential for unconscious bias based on our habits and assumptions, step in when someone is treated less favourably, and tackle pay gaps.

A cornerstone of the IOSH WORK 2022 strategy is to enhance the profession, to elevate its status across all age groups, and promote OSH as an attractive career choice. We work in a diverse global environment; it's important we represent diversity if we are to encourage those we work alongside to make sound, risk-based choices now and in the future.

You may also be interested in...

 The business book club: key lessons from Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends & Influence People

Friday 18th May 2018
Carnegie pioneered the definition of business skills and motivational practices and his bestselling guide, which has sold 16 million copies, remains as relevant and popular today as ever.One of his major themes is that “the only way to influence other people is to talk about what they want and show them how to get it”.He quotes American psychologist Harry A Overstreet’s 1925 book Influencing Human Behavior: “Action springs out of what we fundamentally desire – and the best piece of advice which can be given is: first, arouse in the other person an eager want.”
Open-access content

 IOSH Middle East Conference 2018

Wednesday 16th May 2018
“There is significant evidence to show that asbestos is making its way on to construction sites and into new projects [in the Gulf region],” Charles Faulkner, head of environment, health and safety at asbestos consultancy Anthesis Consulting Group, told IOSH’s Middle East Conference in Abu Dhabi on 25 April.
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 EPC-UK: committed to fitness

Friday 11th May 2018
For EPC-UK, a company with a distributed, ageing, mainly male workforce of nearly 250, the management of occupational ill-health risk is vital.As a leading manufacturer and supplier of commercial explosives (see "EPC-UK" box below) for the UK mining, quarrying and aggregate sectors, EPC’s employees are scattered over eight locations from Shetland to Cornwall and their work is demanding.
Open-access content
Image credit: ©MoustacheGirl

 Effective return to work programmes after cancer are ‘essential’, says EU-OSHA

Friday 1st June 2018
The report is based on a recent study commissioned by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) that examined the issues faced by workers affected by cancer. Researchers said optimising the rehabilitation and return of those affected by cancer would improve their wellbeing and reduce the financial impacts of the disease on European businesses. They have recommended the development of new legislation that obliges all employers to offer return-to-work programmes for their employees.
Open-access content

 New OH assessment keys in to digital modelling of early ill-health detection

Thursday 3rd May 2018
B&CE, the non-profit organisation that operates the UK construction industry’s pension scheme, developed the framework in collaboration with an occupational health (OH) steering group made up of employers, OH professionals, regulators and federations. It will form part of its new digital OH management model that aims to detect ill-health effects at an early stage.
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Image credit: The Clewer Initiative

 Churches’ car wash app aims to help clean up ‘evil scourge’ of modern slavery

Monday 4th June 2018
The free-to-use Safe Car Wash app asks drivers questions relating to signs of modern slavery, including if the worker has access to suitable personal protective equipment such as gloves and boots, if they seem afraid and if the service costs less than £6.70.Based on their answers, the user may be prompted to call the Modern Slavery Helpline.
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