Supporting Ethnic Communities and the Diverse Workforce
Equality Diversity Inclusion support and Improvement Services for your Personal and Organisational Development
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STAFF NETWORKS
SOJOURNER ENTERPRISE consultancy provides programmes, resources, events and tools to support service improvement and help you to create a Network with shared values that align to the values of your organisation.
Sojourner Enterprise will help you develop a staff network in your department, team or organisation and we will support you to create a more inclusive environment for your talented and diverse workforce.
Workingin collaboration with company executives creates allies and provides staff with assurance and confidence which will undoubtedly boost staff morale and performance. Revenue will improve, staff turn over will reduce and the organisation will avoid the loss of talented workers, because staff won’t feel the need to leave the job they love. Therefore, the company can retain the best employees in their workforce. It’s simple really!
SERVICES
What We Do
Promoting the Positive Impact of Diversity in the Workplace
Providing you with the knowledge and skills to challenge unfair treatment and feelings of inequality in your place of work.
Listen and Engage
We focus on the removal of barriers preventing BAME staff from progressing their career pathways in the workplace.
Accountability & Leadership
We promote awareness of and engagement in the practice of positive cultural change at all levels within a organisation
Because One Hand can’t Clap
CELEBRATING WINDRUSH 75
On June 22nd 2023 the nation will celebrate the 75th Anniversary of the arrival of the Empire Windrush HMT landing at Tilbury Dock in 1948 with over 500 arrivers on board from the British West Indies who answered the call from Britain (fondly referred to as the mother country) to help rebuild the country after the devastation of WW2.
They went on to settle in towns and cities across the country and lay foundations for Black communities contributions and pioneering entrepreneurship in many areas including services and enterprise, music, education, sports, entertainment and lifestyle. We will be celebrating those pioneers and their generations with our collaborators and partners at several events throughout 2023.
MAXIMISING YOUR WORKFORCE
RISK AND ETHNIC COMMUNITIES
Health inequalities are now a topic of great concern across sectors. If you are of an older age or from a ethnic background you are more likely have serious illness or death from corona virus, or related variants, compared to people from white backgrounds. Health sector organisations are now obligated to complete Equality Health Impact Assessments (EHIA).
As reported by NHS Employers, since the arrival of the Corona Virus the Black, African, Asian, Indian, Indigenous and other ethnic minority groups are more vulnerable to serious illness or death from COVID-19 than others. Reasons include socio-economic circumstances. The evidence in the PHE Disparities Report shows risk factors are growing. PHE guidance is being updated to reflect the needs evidenced. Beyond the Data Report.
The national response has several shortcomings, but we believe that culturally competent and specific communications are essential to implement the action necessary to bring about real change.
Across all healthcare, corporate and commercial sectors, staff and management are now in a position to take the necessary action to ensure that the disproportionate impact of discrimination on their workforce staff from black, african, asian and other minority ethnic backgrounds and protected groups are minimised and that those staff feel appropriately supported and adequately protected.
Your staff network or trade union representative should be working in collaboration with occupational health and/or Human Resources to communicate the Risk Assessment process to you and issue guidance regarding the follow-up and ongoing support process for people with long term health conditions.
RISK ASSESSMENTS
The completion of equality impact assessments mitigate Risk. Every policy should have a EIA supporting it at submission stage, whether for initial consideration or version review. This process of assessment should be managed in a meticulous and sensitive way given the fact that discrimination and systemic issues exist in most businesses, impacting the workforce staff, patients and clients or customers.
Significant evidence has revealed that staff from various ethnicities often work in frontline roles, therefore the likelihood for discriminatory behaviours to impact these protected groups must be considered, researched and evidenced in order to meet PSED. See Race Equality Foundation article.
Issues and experiences of discrimination in the workplace are evident in most organisations.
To ensure your organisation is appropriately addressing discrimination you should have installed measures for Due Regard to be taken when a policy or operational activity is being written or revised, as it will or may affect people with protected characteristics. Assessing risk is not a box ticking exercise.
The equality impact assessment is a systematic and evidence-based tool, which allows you to consider the likely impact of your service, project or programme or policy on different groups of people. Completion of the equality impact assessment is a legal requirement under race, disability and gender equality legislation.
Equality Impact Assessments are a sure way to measure and monitor policy compliance with the Public Sector Equality Duty and EDS2. A completed EIA should always accompany a policy submission to decision-maker executives. Due regard of the risk of impact on people with the nine protected characteristics must be evidenced.
Due Regard must be seen to be taken when considering the impact of a service, procedure or policy
YOUR EIA STARTS HERE
DISCRIMINATON IN EDUCATION
In 2021, the government’s school workforce data showed black and Asian people are still being under-represented in the teaching workforce. According to the data gathered, which covers a selection of state schools in England, just 4.7% of teachers in England were Asian despite Asian people making up 8.4% of 16- to 64-year-olds at the last census, and of those whose ethnicity was known it was just 2.3% of black teachers, compared to 3.6% of the working-age population.
Whilst at senior level the disparity is even more blatant, showing that just 1% of head teachers are black, and 1.6% are Asian.
In section 17 of the Race Relations Act it shows that it is illegal for a school to discriminate against a student because of their race. This means that schools cannot discriminate in their admission policies, application processes, access to facilities or unfairly exclude a pupil because of their race. The Act also states that schools are legally entitled to make provisions for members of certain racial groups in order to meet the needs of that group.
Equality in Music and Creative Industry
63% of Black music makers have experiences of racism and discrimination in the UK music industry
The UK music industry is diverse and we have a lot to be proud of, but there is still some way to go before the industry become fair and equitable place to work for its employees. Data revealed in the BLiM 2020 study was obtained from a survey of 1,718 performers, creatives and staff. The outcome revealed bias behaviours, microgressions, pay disparities and discrimination are frequently experienced by Black and minority groups in the music industry.
64% of respondents to the survey, which crossed grassroots and established levels, were from Black, mixed and Asian ethnicities. The majority of respondents (55%) lived in London and 17% had a physical or mental impairment, long term health condition or disability.
From chart topping hitmakers to closet producers and community based superstars, the spectrum of challenges faced by Black and ethnic minority groups shocking and evident in the music and creative industries. Further compounded by a lack of equal treatment and access to venues, support and services. In 2020 we met with Inside Reggae UK following a series of online discussions with Black people in the reggae sector and we found far too many shared experiences of discrimination and exclusion at all levels. We are keen to support you to meet these challenges, and find amicable, sustainable solutions.
STAFF NETWORKS allow for the voice of the collective workforce to be heard, engaged with and aligned with the organisations values.
In this way we collaborate with you and your organisation as allies and we support you to make the changes necessary to champion inclusive strategic equality methods at all levels in at your place of work or study.
Discrimination, Diversity and Inclusion are now crucial issues in the workplace. All organisations in all sectors are now taking a second look at their policies and behaviours to ensure they are treating their staff fairly.
There has never been a better time to be part of a group actively challenging discriminations, inequality and systemic racism in the workplace, and who are actively championing intersectionality, leadership and inclusion.
The value of learning the tools and triggers that fuel bias behaviours are priceless and can only serve to benefit you to overcome the challenges. These tools can also be used outside of your place of work to support your progression and improve your wellbeing and that of the organisation as a whole.
Because you have the right to know
YOUR WORKPLACE SUCCESS
Workplace success is built on human interactions, collaborations, partnering and the ability to work together.
We provide a range of learning tools to develop your awareness of behavioural habits and unconscious decision-making that can impact negatively on other people in your organisation or team.
Cultural Appreciation
The Bias Illusion
Emotional Wellbeing
Bullying & Harassment
Freedom to Speak
Being Policy Wise
Leadership Development
Shared Values
Fostering an inclusive, well balanced environment enhances an organisation’s ability to attract and retain a talented workforce. All organisations have a legal obligation to take care of all their staff.
The diverse workforce widens the pool of potential job applicants and demonstrates a workplace culture that values all its staff and demonstrates a strong corporate and social responsibility for the company.
Diversity and Inclusion should now be at the top of the agenda in all organisations
“Go where you’re celebrated Don’t stay where you’re tolerated Don’t stay where you’re denigrated… Because you don’t have to…!”
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Rating: 5 out of 5.
“Accountability “
We all have a responsibility to treat each other with respect, but that culture can only be created by a business keen to tackle it and face it full front. Nima Baniamer, Sky
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Rating: 5 out of 5.
“Celebrate differences”
When we listen and celebrate what is both common and different, we become a wiser, more inclusive, and better organisation.
Pat Wadors, Linked In
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Rating: 5 out of 5.
“Adjust the Mindset”
The point isn’t to get people to accept that they have biases, but to get them to see [for themselves] that those biases have negative consequences for others.
Sincere thanks to our expert panel of speakers, we receive some great feedback from our events.
Huge thanks also to all participants who attend our events. We are so passionate about equalities, our events are designed to give you the insight and support you need to place yourself better when dealing with the challenges of facing discrimination. Follow up events are always being scheduled. Keep an eye on our website for further details or request to join our members list to take full advantage of the benefits of membership.
We encourage you to sign up early to be informed as our events sell out quickly.
Please see the links below for event slides and audio.
Sojourner Enterprise 