One year ago, I and a few of my colleagues began speaking to employers across Hong Kong about the need to be inclusive to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employees. Our rationale is that inclusive workplaces are better for business than those that are not.
Research and common sense both tell us that it is in those workplaces where individuals feel valued for who they are that performance, productivity, staff loyalty and retention are better. Someone who has to lie about their identity at work for fear of being discriminated against is not going to be as comfortable - and therefore as productive or loyal - as someone who can be open about their identity.
My conversations with many so-called 'employers of choice' have given me an idea of which companies in Hong Kong are genuinely committed to winning the war for talent. After all, the LGBT population accounts for at least 5 to 10 per cent of our talent pool.
The good news is that some companies, albeit a minority, are committed to their LGBT employees. These companies have taken the initiative to begin creating an inclusive working environment. A number have included or have committed to including a person's sexual orientation in their equal opportunity policy - even though we do not currently have a law that makes it mandatory to do so.
This may not seem like much, but when we consider that a company's equal opportunity policy generally applies to all areas - such as recruitment selection, promotion, training and development, and disciplinary action - it's clear that the impact is significant.
Further, companies are taking the lead on creating (or in many cases, supporting) LGBT employee networks. These provide not only a support mechanism for employees who share common interests or concerns, but, equally important, a forum or channel to express views or raise issues of concern to the company.
