As explored in my previous blogs, class inequality is alive and kicking in today’s workplaces with class-based bias informing employers’ recruitment and reward practices. However, currently, there is no legal protection for the unfavourable treatment of an individual due to their class, locality or regional background. So what can be done to tackle class discrimination? […]

How do I express my feelings, in the era of #metoo? It’s Valentine’s Day! With love in the air, you may notice a colleague or two walking with a spring in their step, heart filled with the joy of a flourishing office romance.  We spend 71% of our waking hours at work per week, so […]

Snap decisions, “gut instincts” and searching for the “right fit”; from recruitment to reward employees face implicit class-based bias. Whether employers are aware or not, hiring decisions and performance reviews are influenced by implicit bias. There is a reason why board rooms of late (and today) comprised white middle-class, middle-aged, Russell Group-educated men; their unconscious […]

Taboo and difficult to define. Class is not identified as a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010 and subsequently does not form part of the diversity and inclusion conversation – let alone the agenda – for most workplaces. But class discrimination remains prevalent. So why is class such a taboo subject? A stumbling block? […]

You’re well-qualified, have highly-desirable technical skills and extensive experience in your field, so you’re obviously prime leadership material, right? Think again. While these attributes are crucial to your professional success, to be a strong leader it is vital that you also possess people skills – otherwise known as “soft” skills. Calling them “soft” is, in […]

City traders call for shorter trading hours to improve inclusivity and work-life balance. Earlier this month, the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) and the Investment Association (AI) joined forces to urge UK and European exchanges to cut hours in a bid to improve diversity, promote inclusivity and increase wellbeing on the trading floor. […]

When activist Tarana Burke started the Me Too campaign in 2016, she wanted to reach out to survivors of sexual harassment and violence to show they weren’t alone. When the movement was reignited two years ago with the outing of Hollywood media mogul Harvey Weinstein and the help of a prolific hashtag, there was a […]

Toxic behaviour is not just highly poisonous for your people but for your business too. ‘Bants’, risqué jokes, treating some colleagues more favourably than others, scapegoating, making false or elevated promises, destructive gossip, aggressiveness, micromanagement and a lack of empathy – these behaviours contaminate your environment. Such pollutants often lead to heightened levels of workplace […]

Have you worked for a company where you felt your honest mistakes would be punished? Did you worry your opinions would be judged (that’s if you felt able to voice them at all)? If you answered yes, you’ll be aware of the crippling effect of not feeling psychologically safe in the workplace. According to Amy […]

A recent Harvard Business Review article got me thinking about who is responsible for raising awareness of diversity in the workplace. The article described a scenario whereby an employee voices her frustration at the introduction of a new law that will affect her as a minority group member. When her colleague asks what makes the […]

Latest Tell Jane event announced. There isn’t a magic spell to rid the workplace of toxic behaviour – nor an elixir to drink, an invisibility cloak to don, a riddle to solve. Toxic workplace behaviour can be tackled and it can be eradicated. There is an antidote – and it lies in your management team. […]

Everyone has the ability to be an ally An ally is active and galvanising. They support and advocate for others, champion diversity and promote an inclusive culture that benefits everyone as a whole. An ally is also committed to listening to the voices of others in order to challenge institutional bias, as well as their […]