7 Actions to Promote Human Rights and Equality at Work

Enterprises and organisations should adopt a tactical and step-by-step manner of equality and human rights in order to generate a culture of these rights in the workplace. None of these strategies are legal, but an organisation looking to advance equality and respect for human rights at work may find this seven-step structure useful.

• A statement that sets out the employment criteria to which the business or organisation is committed.
• Equality and human rights training would enable employees understand and support these standards for the enterprise or organisation.
• Responsible person(s) or committee who drive the process of setting equality/human rights standards.
• Roadmap as regards equalities and human right issues pointing at goals company/organisation seeks to achieve about employment, equalities and human rights along with actions towards achieving them – This approach is based on an analysis that looked at employment related equalities & human rights situation in this firm/organisation.
• Equality Impact Assessments (EIA) on Human Rights that place such concerns at heart of a firm’s/bodies’ key decision making organs
• Data regarding Equality Act protected characteristics, discrimination grounds within nine grounds under equality laws, as well as those groups likely to suffer violations of their human rights gathered from within the business/organisation with regard to employment
• Governance roles where people having interest in equity/human-rights participate so that they can have influence on policy, procedure & practice within the company/organisation.

A deliberate and planned strategy by which organisations seek to ensure equality across all areas including gender age disability sexual orientation race religion belief status marriage partnership pregnancy maternity), civil liberties (such as freedom from harassment), genetic information citizenship immigration status national origin , military veteran protected attributes Those acts prove there is such possibility that any business could integrate its organisational cultures with considerations relating to both gender inequality elimination and promoting respect for individual civil liberties rather than merely applying reactive approaches whose dynamics rely on responding to spur-of-the-moment opportunities or incidents related to equalities and human rights.

Human Rights and Equality Policy

An organisation’s approach to equality and human rights is a formalised process based on an equality and human rights policy, which acts as the foundation for a structured approach to these issues within an organisation. This gives the company a direction in terms of what it wants from its employees. It declares that:

• The organisation’s commitment when it comes to equality and human rights with respect to its staffs as well as contractors
• Products and services provided by example are employment, equality and human right standard for business
• Measures will be taken by the organisation toward protection of the standard and ensuring this standard becomes effective.

An employer is supposed to take into account expectations enshrined in an Equality & Human Rights Policy about recruitment conditions, workplace culture, career advancement, remuneration, promotions, reasonable accommodations for diversity such as those meant for persons with disabilities, employee equity results, and dismissals/redundancies.

The primary objective of the standards is to ensure that international human rights agreements as well as employment equity legislation are upheld within this organisation. The equality and human rights policy aims at the best practices in diversity inclusion, achieving equality and sustaining human rights.

The equality and human rights policy gives guidelines on how to safeguard those established standards, report and handle complaints whenever these standards are infringed. It specifies the steps that will be taken by the organisation in order to explain its existence to employees, customers so that they understand their obligations. It outlines mechanisms for institutionalising staff member’s and service user’s input towards implementing this policy. It explains governing principles for tracking procedures on respect for different backgrounds. It provides direction for management control over the policy. It also demonstrates infrastructural support within which a discourse of conscious approach can be ensconced.

The process should preferably be undertaken as a senior level responsibility by an enterprise when creating an equality and human rights policy. A participatory process includes representatives from a wide range of service users and employees as well as staff organisations and relevant NGO’s from civil society thus promoting ownership of, and support for, the equality and human rights agenda. This will also enhance the quality of our own document through learning with other businesses who have advanced their understanding in relation to equity issues among other societal issues.

Training in Human Rights and Equality

Equality training enables personnel within an organisation to meet these demands stipulated under the respective organisation’s Equality & Human Rights Policy. Such trainings equip employees with skills such as:

Knowledge on: variety, fairness or justice together with civil liberties–their right-wing approaches alongside duties inhibiting discrimination against them, means through which discrimination arises including harassment or violation of people’s fundamental freedoms, and understanding these things

Skills like: reacting toward acts such as racism or prejudice, promotion of impartiality adhering to equal opportunity policies including sexual harassment issues, behave according to principles underpinning our EHRP namely

Attitude that: Astuteness, respect and non-discrimination towards everyone at the workplace

Through equality and human rights training, personnel development is accomplished, as well as improving their performance in relation to these policies, fostering positive working relationships with other members of staffs and creating a work environment where there is an understanding, appreciation and support for equity.

It is significant to impart senior management and line management training on equality and human rights in order to ensure effective leadership in this area. Policy making personnel, HR people and customer service officers need training too so as to build competencies around EHR throughout critical organisational operations. Besides trainers’ trainings, new employee orientation sessions also include issues of equality & human rights given that an organisation’s culture is developed through these processes.

Taking Charge of Human Rights and Equality

Every employee has a duty to protect human rights and promote equality within the company or organisation they are working. This basic notion must never be lost sight of. To do this, it may be helpful to give responsibility for driving them to those who can carry out the organisations commitment if it wants to be sure its responsibilities towards equal opportunity exist everywhere throughout its ranks

A single individual, ideally a senior employee with the necessary authority, can perform this duty. The person should be given time to do so. Alternatively, an equality and human rights officer could be employed specifically for this purpose. This may ensure that the person has all the qualifications needed for the position.

However, responsibilities related to equality and human rights might also lie on an equality and human rights committee. This will help spread influence and ownership across this committee’s members from various departments or organisational units. It must include those groups which may suffer inequality or potential violations of their human rights. From different angles one can design equality and human rights actions.

Human Rights and Equality Roadmap

The roadmap for employment equality and human rights outlines goals of an organisation or group in respect to promoting equality as well as maintaining employees’ human rights. It further describes what an enterprise or organisation would do to improve on its handling of these challenges. It provides context that enable staff trained in equality and human rights apply knowledge, skills, attitudes acquired into their daily work. It also ensures that rules and promises are implemented at a workplace level.

This step includes several crucial operational areas that need to be taken according to the perspective of the plan itself:

• Eliminate Discrimination
• Attempt Reasonably to Accommodate Persons with Disabilities
• Promote Equality Value Diversity And Uphold Fulfil Human Rights.

The plan ought to have quantifiable effects with specific targets. Morale should be maintained through continuous monitoring of progress and recognition of achievements.

If there is already a previous organisational audit on equalities and UPR within organisations, then an evidence-based E&HR roadmap may form part of it. It covers matters like:

• Status regarding equity & Human Rights Position
• Workers’ positions & experiences
• Customers’ experiences by results
• Policy beneficiaries outcomes–the kind of internal infrastructure needed for supporting E&HR policy within organisations

Participatory planning results in an equity and/ or human rights roadmap. It has the involvement of employees, a range of different employees and employee organisations. To the fullest extent possible, diversity should include the nine protected categories under equality legislation: sex, civil status, family status, age, disability, sexual orientation, race, religion, and membership in the Traveller community. Socio-economic status would also be useful for this purpose.

Evaluation of Human Rights and Equality Impacts

An effect analysis on equality and human rights is conducted on a policy or plan during its design stage so that it can account for differences within society, promote equal opportunities and meet non-discrimination and human rights standards. Evaluating negative impacts associated with any strategy or policy change identifies necessary adaptations needed to adjust the strategy or policy accordingly by considering adjustments that need to be made in order to mitigate the negative effects. In those cases when redesigning is not possible, it becomes paramount to identify mitigation strategies addressing the potential negative impact.