Following the announcement by President Donald Trump that he would be ending federal diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives last week there has been a surge in interest for online guidance providing advice on compliance with UK laws governing diversity.
Skillcast, a training provider in the UK, reported an increase of 92% in page views for its Protected Characteristics at Work resource. This is a guide that outlines legally mandated DEI Standards in the UK.
The average time spent on the page by users is now five minutes. This reflects the growing need for clarity about workplace discrimination laws. Most of these fall under the Equality Act 2010
Vivek D. Dodd, CEO at Skillcast said that companies have seen “a rapid amount of polarised messages which has left many businesses unsure about the necessity and process of DEI agendas going forward.
The Equality Act 2010, which requires UK companies to adhere to diversity and inclusion standards, has set a precedent that could stall and reverse decades of progress. While US companies are moving away, UK companies must still uphold the Equality Act 2010. This emphasizes the importance of legal and ethical compliance, regardless the current political climate.
Annabelle Vultee is the CEO of GoodHabitz. She commented more broadly on the DEI backlash. Many companies, she said, have never done anything but lip service. She stated: “While some companies see DEI as more than just a moral duty, they also recognise it as a competitive edge. Others use the current political climate to back out of commitments that they have never fully accepted.”
She added that “many of these companies likely saw DEI more as a tick-box exercise than a long term investment, which makes it easy to abandon if faced with financial or political pressures.” But dismantling DEI is more than just a way to affect recruitment statistics. It actually undermines the foundations of teams’ ability to take on complex global challenges by engaging in collaboration, feeling well and being engaged.
Vultee stated that the most progressive companies are evolving their DEI programs and not backing down. They “move beyond superficial metrics” to address buried challenges such as gender and culture communication and team dynamics.
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