ILO Report Reveals That Discriminating Against LGBTIQ+ People Can Cost Our Country Money
In recent times, people around the world are adjusting to the idea of the LGBTQ+ community after the community fought long and hard to be recognised and respected. However, there are still organizations, people, institutions, etc. that discriminate against LGBTIQ+ people. In fact, taking into account the multiple and intersecting layers of discrimination that they face, the ILO has issued a 100-page ‘learning guide’ for creating a rather inclusive workplace.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) in their guide have broken down numerous practices from around the world that come in the way of and sometimes aid LGBTIQ+ persons as they seek or sustain employment. The ‘learning guide’ therefore also acts as a training manual for awareness.
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The report of ILO also sheds light on the absence of LGBTIQ+ people from the process of forming diversity and inclusion strategies in workplaces around the world. The research for the report primarily focuses on France, Thailand, Costa Rica, South Africa, Argentina, and Indonesia.
Having said that, the ILO research doesn’t fail to highlight the global trends of harassment, violence and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender expression, sex characteristics, and gender identity. In fact, it also does focus on India in the sub-section on how discrimination against the LGBTIQ+ has an economic cost. The report highlights the correlation between workplace bullying and poor physical and mental health.
The ILO report also states that the discrimination of the LGBTIQ+ leads to lost labour time, inefficient allocation of human resources, underinvestment in human capital, lost productivity, and lower output at the broader economy level.
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As per The Wire, the ILO report says, “Developing human capital is a smart investment. Investing in networking and learning opportunities for LGBTIQ+ workers can contribute to finding the right people, help companies better utilise talent and build the social capital of marginalised individuals.”
The report also calls on governments from around to review their national policies and labour laws so as to better assess their work policy environment for LGBTIQ+ persons. ILO says, “This will allow the identification of concrete steps for improving the legal and policy environment, ending discrimination and exclusions, and complying with international instruments… Equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace make good business sense.”
In addition, the ILO report also highlighted how social dialogue with the LGBTIQ+ community will help allow the identification of barriers that the community members face when entering the labour market and accessing government schemes.
