Strategies to Create Safe Spaces for LGBTQ+ Individuals

How well does your organisation support the LGBTQI+ community? Shape Talent Ltd engaged Dr Ciarán McFadden-Young, Senior Lecturer and researcher on EDI at the University of Stirling, to author a white paper that examines the barriers to LGBTQI+ career progression. This is an adaptation of the research that we conducted into women's career progression, looking through a lens of gender identity and sexual orientation. Addressing systemic barriers is at the heart of our work. You can download our white paper to see the specific recommendations that we make on how organisations can cultivate inclusivity and address the barriers to LGBTQI+ people in the workplace. For those who are time poor, here are the 8 headline recommendations: 𝟏. 𝐀𝐝𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲. For example, do the childcare and parental leave policies assume a heterosexual employee? Does the workplace have gender-neutral bathrooms? Is a uniform required, and are there only gendered versions? 𝟐. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐋𝐆𝐁𝐓𝐐+ 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩. Although there are social, cultural and historical reasons why lesbian women, gay men, bisexual people, trans people and queer people all form one distinct and recognisable collective group, different sub groups experience distinctly different barriers. 𝟑. 𝐄𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧. Organisations should have clear and well communicated anti-discrimination and harassment policies, provide anti-discrimination training, and engage in cultural audits to uncover any potential informal issues 𝟒. 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐚𝐰. This is particularly important for multinational organisations operating in very different regions with different legislative norms. 𝟓. 𝐄𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐞𝐬. Training and development can be offered to help demystify common concerns, clarify the terminology used in discussions about LGBTQ+ identities, and in many cases offer a starting point for conversations on LGBTQ+ inclusion in the workplace. 𝟔. 𝐀𝐝𝐨𝐩𝐭 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐲 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧. A policy should, where possible, have input from those it seeks to protect or promote inclusion for. 𝟕. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬. While your organisation may have excellent inclusion and anti-discrimination policies, it’s important that your employees are made aware (and reminded) of them. 𝟖. 𝐀𝐝𝐨𝐩𝐭 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫-𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝-𝐰𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐝𝐞. In June of each year, more and more organisations are accused of ‘pink-washing’ or ‘rainbow-washing. It is a form of performative allyship. Ensure your work extends throughout the year and is meaningful. #WorldPride2024 #Pride2024 #ThreeBarriers https://lnkd.in/erD9a3Sy

Standing with trans* employees: more than words, it’s action. Recent rhetoric and policies have undermined the rights of transgender and non-binary individuals, but let me be clear: trans rights are human rights. As workplaces, and as individuals, we have a responsibility to stand in solidarity with our trans colleagues. The workplace should be a space where everyone feels valued and safe to thrive—not an environment where identity becomes a barrier. Here’s how we can take action, together: 💼 In the Workplace Update Policies: Ensure anti-discrimination policies explicitly protect gender identity and expression. Inclusive Facilities: Provide gender-neutral restrooms and inclusive healthcare benefits. Education: Train staff on trans awareness and allyship to foster a culture of respect. Celebrate Voices: Amplify and centre trans and non-binary employees in decision-making and leadership. 🤝 As Individuals Use Correct Pronouns: Take the time to ask and use them consistently. Speak Up: Call out transphobic behaviour or rhetoric, even when it’s uncomfortable. Listen and Learn: Seek out stories, resources, and perspectives to better understand trans experiences. Normalise Support: Share and support trans inclusion initiatives in your networks. 📢 Now Available: A Good Practice Guide to Trans Inclusion I’m proud to share this guide, co-developed with over 20 trans and non-binary engineers with InterEngineering, National Grid and Stonewall back in 2017. It’s packed with actionable steps to create workplaces where everyone can thrive. 💡 Download the guide, share it widely, and start a meaningful conversation in your organisation. Together, we can create workplaces that embrace inclusion, not just as a policy, but as a practice. When we act as allies and advocates, we make inclusion possible—not just as a buzzword, but as a standard. Let’s build a future where everyone belongs. 🌈 #TransRightsAreHumanRights #WorkplaceInclusion #TransInclusionGuide

Hopefully this isn't brand new information to you, but trans people are under attack. If you're celebrating Pride, you need to be doing something to actually care for and protect your trans employees. Many trans employees and employees with trans family members are navigating fear, legal uncertainty, and real safety concerns, on top of doing their jobs. You don’t need a perfect and thorough plan to help. But you do need to act. 〰 Check in, and mean it. Train managers on how to check in with care. Don’t assume. Don’t stay silent. Acknowledge what’s happening and let people know what support is available. 〰 Provide real resources. Give LGBTQIA+ ERGs access to legal and safety planning tools. Share guides from orgs like Trans Lifeline and Transgender Law Center. Consider offering legal consults or stipends. 〰 Support mental health. Highlight providers with LGBTQIA+ expertise. I love Therify for connecting employees with mental health providers who reflect their identities. Make sure people know how to access EAPs, reimbursement, or stipends, and normalize using them. 〰 Offer flexible time off. People may need time for legal processes, safety planning, relocation, or medical care. Make sure policies are flexible and clearly communicated. 〰 Audit your policies. Update or create a gender transition and affirmation policy. Make sure systems respect people’s names and pronouns. Let employees opt out of travel to states with anti-trans laws. List explicit protections on the basis of gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation in your nondiscrimination policies. 〰 Review your healthcare coverage. Be sure you are actually covering gender-affirming care. Offer stipends or travel reimbursement for those in states where care is restricted. Cover queer family structures fully for fertility benefits, parental leave, and other family benefits. 〰 Don’t wait for someone to ask. Take initiative. The burden shouldn’t fall on trans employees to explain what they need just to feel safe at work. You don’t have to do everything. But you have to do something.

To save trans inclusion efforts, let's stop chasing bad actors and instead leverage the following strategies to de-polarize Trans inclusion and improve outcomes for all: 🎬 First, when it comes to programming, let's leverage storytelling more than we leverage hard facts/data. Hitting a skeptical leader over the head with the suicidality rate for Trans youth is not going to make them wake up. In fact, it will likely make them double down on their existing beliefs because someone in polarization (your Uncle Bob for example) can only take in facts and data that support their ~existing~ world view. It's much easier to see ourselves in someone's personal story. This explains the power of a strong Coming Out Panel. We need stories from trans people but also stories from parents who have trans kids, straight white men who are working to disrupt toxic masculinity and anyone who is disrupting conventional gender expectations. By building an intersectional coalition of people negatively impacted by gender norms, we can better advocate for the outcomes we want. 💇♀️ Second, we need to provide opportunities for non-LGBTQ people to explore their own gender rather than another vocab lesson about pronouns. My most successful facilitation question is "Tell me about the first time you performed gender incorrectly?" When you give men and women the space to explore how their family of origin, school system and culture set them up with restrictive gender expectations, it helps them realize that, "Oh, this isn't about trans people. This is about my right to define who I am and express who I am without consequences. I have something at stake here." ⛓️ Third, we need to tie Trans inclusion into our organization's core values. If our values are "excellence" and "innovation," then Trans team members being excluded from contributing our talents and ideas fully due to intentional misgendering, hiring and advancement bias and being unable to access healthcare aren't just instances of trans exclusion, they invalidate who we say we are as an organization. Leaders need to see that THEY are living out of alignment with THEIR stated core values. By helping leaders go into that moral and cognitive dissonance, the desire to change and the desire for action emerges 🌎 Finally, we need to connect Trans inclusion to the systems that need to change to improve outcomes for ALL employees. I guarantee you that Trans people are not the only group who worry about fair promotions. When we set a broader goal of "eliminating bias in performance reviews by implementing structured rubrics and training managers on providing feedback" we can build systems that are free of bias for ALL employees. By leveraging these approaches we shift the goal from "how to we stop those 1 or 2 bad actors" to "how do we create a workplace where everyone has what they need to thrive." I find the latter to be much more exciting and well within our reach. ❤️

The first Pride was an absolute riot. No like ... literally. In June 1969, patrons of the Stonewall Inn rioted against harassment and police brutality. Black and brown, trans, queer, sex workers, and allies used their collective voice to protest the voice to protest the nightly raids, discriminatory arrests, and systemic violence that targeted their very existence. That spontaneous uprising ignited a movement. And here we are, 56 years later, with much of the same work ahead of us. As a CMO, talking about our brand's “values” without action is hollow. We are stewards of the brand. And what is brand but your values in action? CMOs are responsible for making sure our insides match our outsides; our internal policies must be in alignment with our external messaging. Without those two in harmony, you're building a brand that's pandering and performative. If you're a CMO or an executive looking for a roadmap to support your LGBTQIA+ employees, here are a few places to start: 1. Review Benefits & Policies: Make sure your health plan covers gender-affirming care—hormone therapy, surgeries, and mental‐health support. Offer parental leave and family-building benefits that recognize adoption, surrogacy, and chosen family structures. 2. Advocate Externally: Publicly back legislation that protects LGBTQIA+ rights—anti‐discrimination laws, marriage equality, and transgender healthcare access. Partner with established LGBTQIA+ organizations to amplify their advocacy and fundraising efforts. 3. Elevate LGBTQIA+ Voices Internally: Fund and empower your LGBTQIA+ Employee Resource Group—give them budget, executive sponsorship, and a seat at planning tables. Host educational sessions on pronoun usage, unconscious bias, and the history of Stonewall so every employee understands what Pride stands for. 4. Audit Your Hiring & Advancement Practices: Scan job descriptions for biased language; explicitly encourage LGBTQIA+ candidates to apply. Develop mentorship or sponsorship programs aimed at retaining and promoting LGBTQIA+ talent. Explore the diversity of your executive team. Does your team represent the demographics of the employee and customer populations you serve? 5. Sustain Support Beyond June Celebrate other important dates—Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31), BIPOC Pride (July), Bi+ Awareness Week (September), World AIDS Day (December 1)—to show ongoing commitment. Regularly survey your LGBTQIA+ employees about belonging, psychological safety, and workplace improvements. Pride began as a riot because people refused to be erased. And here we are, holding positions of power and privledge, out here still refusing to be erased. How is your company putting Pride into practice—beyond June? I’d love to hear real actions (and hold each other accountable) to build truly inclusive, courageous organizations.

Yesterday was National Coming Out Day. When I came out as queer to my parents, I was told I was unloving, unkind, and selfish. So when companies expect queer employees (especially those raised in cultures where queerness is illegal or grounds for disownment) to “just be themselves” at work because you said it’s safe, I have to ask: What actions are you taking to prove that the harm many of us faced at home won’t be repeated in your workplace? Here are tangible steps to bridge the gap between intention and impact: 1. Normalize pronouns in email signatures. If non-queer employees or those who “don’t believe in pronouns” resist, ask them to consider the difference between discomfort and danger. Discomfort is not the same as harm, and the more privilege someone holds, the more they may confuse the two. Who is actually at risk here? 2. Audit your leadership. Are there openly queer people in decision-making roles? If most LGBTQIA+ employees are individual contributors, it’s time to be intentional about hiring and promotion practices. 3. Invest in real support. Put your money where your mouth is: make sure your health insurance plans covers gender-affirming care, offer therapy stipends, train managers in inclusion, let employees choose unisex or preferred-fit swag, compile a list of local LGBTQ+ resources, establish a queer ERG, and make your stance on inclusion public. 4. Align your branding with your values. Look at your website, social media, and office artwork. Whose faces and identities are visible? Do queer people see themselves represented or erased? 5. Hold leadership accountable. Representation at the top matters. But silence and apathy from those with power may be even more damaging. How is your white, straight, cis male CEO learning about systems that harm queer employees? How is your board of mostly men with stay-at-home partners creating space for a lesbian couple working two jobs while trying to adopt? How us your executive team that has no visibly queer representation remembering to put their pronouns in their signatures when no one is there to challenge them otherwise? You can’t ask queer people to “self-care” their way out of systems that were never designed to include them. ---------- Need help creating real accessibility and inclusion at work? That’s what I help companies do - through Universal Design, Disability Justice, and Intersectional strategy. Let’s make your workplace one where everyone can thrive.

Last week was heavy. My heart goes out to the families of Nex Benedict, Luke Davies and Jesse Baird. Please check out the meaningful posts LGBTIQA+ leaders have made about these events and these lives lost. As a workplace inclusion specialist my contribution to the conversation is this: 1. All employees, students, customers, community members need access to safe bathrooms without exception. People need to be able to select the bathroom where they feel the safest, and all gender bathrooms should exist in all work/study environments. If this is not the case at your workplace, please start advocating hard now. AND bathrooms should not be a battleground for transrights. Don't consult, don't debate - just give everybody the bathrooms they need. Yes, transwomen belong in women's bathrooms. 2. Family violence is a national tragedy that workplaces play a significant role in combatting and preventing. Do your family violence policies also specifically call in LGBTIQA+ folks? Do your managers know how to create safe spaces for any (and all) employees experiencing family violence so they may access support? 3. Are you proactively tackling gender equity, our number one tool to prevent family violence? Gendered stereotypes and expectations do sit at the bottom of discrimination, harassment and assault in this country for women, trans and gender diverse folks and the LGBTIQA+ community more broadly. This needs to be actively challenged from all angles, workplaces are brilliant places for this work. 4. If you do not have access to experts in these areas to help develop truly inclusive practices and policies then find them. I can help with gender equity work, LGBTIQA+ inclusion and specifically trans and gender diverse inclusion. But there are many else on this platform that have their own specialist areas that might suit your needs including the amazing Budi Sudarto and Gemma Saunders 🌈 GAICD. #lgbtqRights #transgender #workplaceinclusion

🏳️🌈 What does effective allyship look like to you? 🏳️⚧️ As we continue to strive for inclusivity and diversity in the workplace, it's crucial to reflect on what it means to be an effective ally to our LGBTQ+ colleagues. Allyship isn't just about words, it's about action and genuine support. To me, effective allyship means actively listening to the experiences and needs of LGBTQ+ people, educating ourselves on their challenges and triumphs, and taking tangible steps to create a more inclusive environment. Here are some pieces of advice for professionals looking to be good allies to their LGBTQ+ co-workers: 📚 Educate Yourself Take the time to educate yourself on LGBTQ+ issues, terminology, and history. Resources such as articles, books, and workshops can provide valuable insights and help you better understand the experiences of your colleagues. 👂 Listen and Learn Create space for open and honest conversations with LGBTQ+ people. Listen to their perspectives, experiences, and needs without judgment. By actively listening, you can gain valuable insights into how to be a better ally. 🗣 Speak Up Use your privilege and voice to advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and equality. Speak up against discrimination, microaggressions, and harmful stereotypes when you encounter them in the workplace. Your voice can make a difference in creating a more inclusive environment. 🙂 Respect Pronouns and Identities Respect people's pronouns and identities by using the correct names and pronouns they prefer. Avoid making assumptions about someone's gender identity or expression and always ask if you're unsure. 📢 Amplify LGBTQ+ Voices Take proactive steps to amplify the voices and achievements of LGBTQ+ people in your workplace. Recognise their contributions, advocate for their inclusion in decision-making processes, and support their career advancement. 🌈 Be an Active Ally Allyship is an ongoing commitment. Continuously educate yourself, challenge your own biases, and actively support LGBTQ+ initiatives both inside and outside the workplace. By embodying these principles of effective allyship, we can create a workplace where everyone feels valued, respected, and empowered to bring their authentic selves to work. 🏳️🌈 #Allyship #LGBTQ+ #DiversityandInclusion #WorkplaceEquality

It’s LGBT+ History Month in the UK, a time to reflect, celebrate, and take action to drive inclusion for LGBTQ+ communities that extends all year round. It’s about using this time to create plans for tangible action, not committing to changing corporate logos or making statements of solidarity that are forgotten once 1st March rolls around. LGBTQ+ rights continued to be attacked. Businesses that are stepping back from being vocal in their support and action for change – not only is that the wrong thing to do from a moral standpoint, but your LGBTQ+ employees can see you edging further from solidarity and they deserve better. Alongside the need for LGBTQ+ visibility and representation real action is needed to create lasting change. Some actions that businesses can take that go beyond performative support are: 1️. Audit your policies and benefits – Ensure your policies are inclusive of LGBTQ+ employees, particularly trans and non-binary individuals. Check your parental leave, healthcare benefits, and workplace protections—do they fully support your workforce? 2. Invest in education and awareness – Run inclusion trainings, spotlight employee voices, and educate teams on LGBTQ+ history and allyship. Creating a culture of awareness is key to fostering true inclusion. 3️. Actively support career progression – Representation matters at every level. Mentor, sponsor, and elevate LGBTQ+ talent so they have equitable opportunities to progress into leadership. The critics might be loud, but equity is not special treatment, and groups that have been historically marginalised need equitable solutions to succeed. Inclusion isn’t just a value—it’s a responsibility. If you’re unsure where to start, let’s chat. My DMs are open—let’s work together to enable your organisation’s LGBTQ+ employees to succeed. ❤️💛💜💚🩵🤍🩷🖤🤎 #LGBTPlusHistoryMonth #InclusionMatters #LGBTQInclusion #DiversityAndInclusion #Leadership

Your company's LGBTQ+ employees are planning exit strategies. Here's what people leaders need to know. I just had a chat with a trans friend who works at a large employer. They're updating their resume, quietly networking, and preparing to leave a job they love. Not because of performance issues or career growth, but because they no longer feel safe living in their state. I have another friend who recently left a truly thrilling job working on cutting edge tech, because she felt she needed to leave the United States to keep her family safe. These aren’t unique stories. Across my network, LGBTQ+ professionals are having hushed conversations about backup plans, safe states or countries, and which companies still have their backs. As someone who's spent 5+ years building healthcare for our community - first scaling Plume Clinic to become the world's largest transgender healthcare provider, now at FOLX Health - I've watched trust erode in real-time. Here's what's actually happening in your workplace right now. Your LGBTQ+ employees are: - Calculating whether their health insurance will cover their care next year - Wondering if that exec's pointed tweets signal danger - Anxiously refreshing news sites and trying to breathe - Checking which states their company operates in (yes, this matters now) - Building emergency funds specifically for discrimination scenarios Meanwhile, companies are sending mixed signals. Pride parties in June, silence in January. DEI commitments in recruiting, but "let's table that initiative" in conference rooms. The data backs what I'm seeing: 2 in 3 transgender employees and 1 in 3 cisgender LGBQ employees have left a job due to how they were treated for being LGBTQ. That is already so many and that number is about to skyrocket. Smart companies are taking action: - Explicitly reaffirming healthcare coverage - Training managers on supporting employees through this moment   - Creating clear reporting structures for discrimination - Actually listening when LGBTQ+ employees share concerns - Partnering with orgs like FOLX to provide comprehensive support The data backs these strategies, too. Inclusive companies drive performance and innovation and save their companies money via retention and engagement. Your LGBTQ+ employees aren't looking for special treatment. They're wondering if they'll still have healthcare, if their IDs will out them during business travel, if their kids are safe in their schools. They can’t focus on promotions when they’re focused on survival. LGBTQ+ people make up a significant part of your workforce (25%+ of Gen Z!). They may be some of your most resilient, creative, and loyal team members. (We've often had to be.) If you're in HR or leadership, now's the time to act. Your LGBTQ+ employees are already making tough decisions about their futures. Make sure those decisions include staying with you.