{"id":1410,"date":"2020-05-27T18:07:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-27T18:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/insight.thomsonreuters.com\/nz\/legal\/?p=1410"},"modified":"2023-03-13T02:40:59","modified_gmt":"2023-03-13T02:40:59","slug":"how-to-preserve-di-progress-during-economic-downturns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/insight.thomsonreuters.co.nz\/legal\/posts\/how-to-preserve-di-progress-during-economic-downturns","title":{"rendered":"How to Preserve D&I Progress During Economic Downturns"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The public health crisis has resulted in unprecedented job loss since March, and organisations need to careful that their diversity and inclusion (D&I) progress doesn\u2019t falter.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

More than 700,000 US jobs were eliminated<\/a> in the first wave of pandemic layoffs in March, according to the US Labor Department, and nearly 60% of those jobs<\/a> were held by women. Further, job losses to date because of the COVID-19 pandemic has had an out-sized impact on Latinix and Black workers, according to a survey conducted by the University of Southern California<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the current job losses for women and minority workers have been focused on lower paying service jobs, there is a risk that companies employing white collar workers could face a similar plight. To avoid this, organisations should initiate discussions with their employees about reductions in the workforce along with<\/em> a commitment to safeguard organisations\u2019 progress on D&I.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How history repeats itself<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Individuals from underrepresented groups are disproportionately impacted by lay-offs, and the evidence to prove it goes back decades. Researchers found \u201cthat whites are less likely to be laid off than nonwhites and that, among nonwhites, Asians are less likely to be laid off than blacks or Hispanics,\u201d according to a study of data<\/a> from a financial firm with more than 8,000 employees that was published in Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society<\/a> in 2002.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From these studies and plenty of other evidence (such as this<\/a>) gathered during the Great Recession that began in 2008, it is easy to conclude that institutional bias is at play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the best time to minimise bias during workforce reductions is before<\/em> the organisation is forced to enter into these conversations. Indeed, Chandra Childers, study director at the Institute for Women\u2019s Policy Research, stated<\/a> that a \u201cwork culture that truly values diversity and inclusion thinks about these issues before they even arise.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

RELATED: <\/strong>Change Makers Podcast Episode 6: Lawyer Mums Australia<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are minimum standards recommended to ensure fairness and equity are top of mind when lay-off decisions are necessary \u2014 and these could even help protect against any future litigation. These standards include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n