10 EU election demands; Women of Color Get Less Support at Work. Here’s How Managers Can Change That; The grim reality of job hunting in the age of AI

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EQUAL@WORK | March 2019

IT WAS A SUCESS: EU Anti Racism Days
This week activists from accross #Europe came together for the EU Anti Racism Days ahead of the #EUelections2019. What's next: Our equality demands to ending racism: https://www.enar-eu.org/EUelectionsdemands #EndRacismEU #EuropeWeWant

ENAR's Equal@work Platform brings together employers from the public and private sector, social partners, NGOs, public authorities and political institutions to explore progressive ways to operate workplaces that are open, equal and free from discrimination.

You need to reject racism, unapologetically.

"#EUelection2019 Candidates: You need to reject racism, unapologetically. Civil Society: We need to be the the critical collective voice in this regard", says Michael Privot, Director of ENAR. Watch the presentation Michael Privot made last week during the EU Anti Racism Days. #EuropeWewant

EVENTS AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

Hackathon Diversité, Pour la Solidarité, April-October. Read More
Online course: Fight against Racism, Xenophobia, Homophobia and Transphobia. Read More
Nisa Nashim Annual Conference 2019: Faith and Friendship, 07/04/2019. Read More
Democracy Alive! Festival, 11-13/04/2019, Texel. Read More
Brussels SDG Summit, 06 - 07/05/2019, Brussels. Read More
Annual Convention on Inclusive Growth, European Commission, 20/05/2019. Read More

Call for nominations for International UNITED Conference "Power of coexistence: Turn it on!", 15-20/05/2019, Tirana. Read More
7th Biennial Afroeuropeans Studies Conference: Black In/Visibilities Contested, 4-6/07/2019, Lisbon. Read More
Bootcamp campaign training for activists, 14-19/07/2019, London. Read More
Listen to Europe: Campaign and event calendar. Read More

ENAR NEWS

ENAR's 10 EU Election demands: Ending racism in the European Union
ENAR launches its 10 EU election demands, calling on candidates to put the European Union on a fairer path by actively promoting equality and social justice for all and tackling structural inequality experienced by minorities across Europe. Read More

European Parliament votes milestone resolution on fundamental rights of people of African descent in Europe
The European Parliament made history by recognising the fundamental rights of black people in a landmark resolution overwhelmingly adopted by 535 MEPs. It is the first time the EU denounces structural racism experienced by black people, calls for reparations and to end racial profiling. Read More

Instrumentalising women’s rights in racist discourses: we need an intersectional approach
On International Women's Day, we look at how women's rights can be instrumentalised in racist discourses and the need for an intersectional approach. "When pursuing a women’s rights agenda, policy makers should ensure that an intersectional approach is used in order to avoid reproducing stigmatisation and discrimination of groups they otherwise strive to protect", Isabela Mihalache writes on our blog. Read More

Diversity 2.0 - An Employers’ Guide
ENAR member Generation 2.0 for Rights, Equality & Diversity, based in Greece, has published “Diversity 2.0-An Employers’ Guide”, addressed primarily to companies and organisations, on the topic of diversity in the workplace. It suggests step-by-step practices, provides tips and makes recommendations on efficient diversity management. Read More

EQUAL@WORK PARTNERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Coca-Cola EU takes part in debate on youth participation in the 2019 EU elections
How can young people get politicians to address the problems they care about? Laura Brems from @CocaCola_EU, addresses this issue live. Watch the debate

Diversité et inclusion à L'Oréal: pourquoi et comment ?
Notre politique d’accueil des personnes aux parcours et origines de toutes sortes apporte un réel avantage aux membres de nos équipes et le succès de notre entreprise. Nous sommes convaincus qu’une politique en faveur de la Diversité et l’Inclusion permet à chacun quelque que soit sa culture, son parcours, son origine sociale d’apprendre des autres, et de travailler ensemble pour créer des communautés et des entreprises toujours plus inclusives. Watch the video

BEST PRACTICES ON BUSINESS & INCLUSION

Women of Color Get Less Support at Work. Here’s How Managers Can Change That.
Women of color don’t need to be told to “lean in.” Research shows that the vast majority of them have confidence and ambition, determination and desire. And yet, despite representing about 18% of the U.S. population, women of color represented only 4% of C-Level positions in 2018, falling far below white men (68%) and white women (19%). It’s clear that the factors preventing women of color from advancing at work are quite different from those holding white women and even men of color back. These include microaggressions, double standards, and unconscious bias to name a few. How can leaders help the women of color on their teams to advance? We propose six actions that can be taken immediately. Read More

When and Why Diversity Improves Your Board’s Performance
On January 1, California law said that all locally headquartered publicly traded companies must have at least one female director by 2020. While new to the U.S., mandates to increase gender diversity on corporate boards are common elsewhere. For example, Norway, Spain, France, and Iceland all have laws requiring that women comprise at least 40% of boards at publicly listed companies. Evidence that board diversity benefits firms, however, has been mixed. We interviewed 19 board directors to learn whether and how corporate boards were benefiting from diversity. The research found that diversity doesn’t guarantee a better performing board and firm; rather, the culture of the board is what can affect how well diverse boards perform their duties and oversee their firms. Read More

Accenture: Using Technology to Turn Refugees into Employees
At Accenture’s Kronberg site, the leadership team made it their goal for the company to take on a greater role in integrating refugees in Germany. When the company was confronted with the challenge of filling 400 vacant technology specialist positions, Accenture quickly realized this was the perfect opportunity to fulfill their goal. From this realization, The Jump Start Refugees program was born to help refugees access employment opportunities at Accenture. Read More

Entry Hub – Because Integration is Local
In an era where technology has revolutionized the way we interact with each other, connecting in-person can seem like a thing of the past. But for refugees who are seeking employment in a new city, in can be the key to their success. Read on to learn how We Link Sweden’s Entry Hub is playing an important role in connecting job-seeking refugees to companies that want to hire them. Read More

Potsdam: Fast-Tracking Refugee Teachers
Internationally trained teachers can become re-certified in Germany. However, by 2016 neither students, schools nor would-be teachers could afford the lengthy training period. The Refugee Teachers Program at Brandenburg University set out to shorten that timeline for qualified refugee teachers from seven to 1.5 years though Intensive German courses complemented by specialized instructional, pedagogical and school education seminars. It works. Read More

NEWS FROM EUROPE & BEYOND

Race at Work
More than two decades ago, HBR invited 10 executives of color to a roundtable discussion of race in the workplace and published an edited transcript of their conversation. Recently I pulled that article out, thinking it would give me a sense of how the landscape had changed since 1997. But when I read it, I was startled. The discussion didn’t feel dated at all. In fact, the topics those leaders addressed are completely of-the-moment. African Americans are still seriously underrepresented in the senior ranks of organizations. Hiring and promotion processes still favor people from the same racial, gender, and class background as the decision maker. People of color still have less access to important social networks than whites do and still sense that white colleagues are surprised when they show they’re competent, intelligent, and hardworking. So how can we begin to change the dynamic? Read More

Big firms lying about female and minority directors, says top business chief
The new chair of one of the UK’s most influential business groups has accused Britain’s biggest companies of lying when they say they cannot find enough female or ethnic minority directors. Charlotte Valeur, who joined the Institute of Directors (IoD) in September, said she would start calling for new laws next year to force firms to improve their diversity if FTSE 350 companies failed to make faster progress. Read More

'Dehumanising, impenetrable, frustrating': the grim reality of job hunting in the age of AI
According to Nathan Mondragon, finding the right employee is all about looking at the little things. Tens of thousands of little things, as it turns out. Mondragon is the head psychologist at Hirevue, a company that offers software that screens job candidates using algorithms and artificial intelligence (AI). Hirevue’s flagship product, used by global giants such as Unilever and Goldman Sachs, asks candidates to answer standard interview questions in front of a camera. Read More

Why Leaning In Doesn't Apply To Women Of Color
When focusing on how to overcome gender inequality and the biases that women face in the workplace, intersectionality can play an important but often overlooked role. The compound effect of different forms of oppression can create unique barriers that make women of color’s experiences particularly challenging. Minda Harts decided to examine these barriers in her upcoming book The Memo. Minda, who is a professor, CEO and podcast host, sat down to discuss why "leaning in" has not worked for women of color and why her new book is required reading for both women of color and organizational leaders. Read More

Discrimination when shop staff followed a Roma family - company sentenced
It was in June 2017 that shop staff in a store in Linköping, followed a family who were Finnish Roma and threatened to call Securitas. Now the shop is sentenced for unlawful discrimination after the Discrimination Ombudsman took the case to court. The father asked the staff to stop this, but got the answer, among other things, that it was entirely up to the staff to decide who would be allowed to shop there. Read More

Unfair share of trainee places is given to white boys, warns report
Employers need to reserve places on apprenticeship schemes for young women, disabled people and ethnic minorities to create a more level playing field, the country’s equality body has said. The government has pledged to create 3 million apprenticeships in England by next year. Read More

Unia handled 11% more racism files in 2017
Unia, the Belgian Centre for Equal Opportunities, processed 866 files concerning racism in 2017 – an 11% increase compared to the year before. Over the course of five years, there is a 55% increase. Complaints were mostly filed about activities taking place on the internet (25%), at work (19%), when buying goods or services (24%). Read more

Middle income earners behind rising racial tensions, research suggests
Britain’s low income masses, often known as the “left behind”, appear not to be the main cause of rising racial and religious tensions, according to research showing middle income earners are more likely to feel threatened by immigrants, Muslims, Gypsies and Travellers. Far from wanting to “take back control” most people who fear immigrants also declared themselves very or fairly satisfied with life and said they were completely or mostly able to influence decisions that affect their lives. Read More

Decathlon cancels plans to sell sport hijab in France
'Unprecedented wave of insults and threats' forces French retailer to stop introduction of runner's hijab in France. French sports goods chain Decathlon has cancelled plans to sell a sports version of the Muslim headscarf in France after politicians, including a minister, threatened a boycott. The company had earlier written on Twitter that it had suffered an "unprecedented wave of insults and threats" over the product. Read More

We Urgently Need More Black Female Professors In UK Universities
There are just 25 black British female professors in UK universities – the smallest group of professors in terms of both race and gender. A new report by Dr Nicola Rollock, and the first study of its kind in the UK, delves into the experiences and challenges of this virtually invisible group of women. Read More

Can We Program an Equitable Future?
Organizations have introduced AI into many work processes, especially recruiting and talent-management functions. AI hiring and talent-management systems have the potential to move the needle on gender equality in workplaces by using more objective criteria in recruiting and promoting talent. But what happens if the algorithm is actually relying on biased input to make predictions? Can machines and artificial intelligence develop unintentional biases, creating the same inequities as people with unconscious biases? Read More

Police leader calls for laws to allow positive race discrimination
New laws should allow police to positively discriminate in favour of minority ethnic recruits, otherwise the ranks of officers will be too white for decades to come, the leader of Britain’s police chiefs has said. In an interview to mark the 20th anniversary of the Macpherson report into the death of Stephen Lawrence, Sara Thornton said police had made huge progress, but “unconscious bias” still existed and the way they used their powers needed to be seen to be fair. Read More

Multicultural employees keep their ethnicity in the background

According to a thesis by sociologist Ismintha Waldring of VU University, second generation Turkish and Moroccan Dutch people tend to emphasize the similarities they share with their colleagues as much as possible. In the workplace, Dutch people with a migrant background try to keep their ethnic identity in the background. Waldring interviewed multicultural employees who were born in the Netherlands and have foreign parents. In order to avoid microaggressions and discrimination in the workplace, often times these nationals feel the need to suppress their multicultural background. Read More

The Swedish Medical Association under investigation after accusations of anti-Semitism

Suspected discrimination on anti-Semitic grounds against several doctors at Karolinska University Hospital in Stockholm has led to an investigation of the whole association, as well as the hospital management. This is because hospital management is thought to have been aware of the accusations for at least a year and not acted and because the doctors who reported the discrimination claim to have received insufficient support from the association. Read More

Dutch court rules against Muslim man who refused to shave beard for job
A Dutch court has backed the suspension of a Muslim man’s benefits over his refusal on religious grounds to shave his beard while on training for a job. The unnamed man had been offered a job as an asbestos removal officer but was subsequently told he would need to be clean shaven in order to undergo the training course. When he refused on the basis of his religious convictions, Amersfoort city council suspended payments to both him and his wife for a month under the Participatiewet, which provides a minimum income for every legal resident in the Netherlands. Read More

Netherlands needs 50,000 foreign workers a year to keep economy running
The Netherlands needs to attract 50,000 foreign workers a year from the rest of the European Union to make up for shortages in the labour market, according to CBS figures. The statistics agency said around 750,000 economic migrants had arrived in recent years, mostly from Poland and other former Eastern Bloc nations, often to take up jobs in sectors where there are not enough trained Dutch personnel, such as logistics. Read More

Research says: without the right mind-set, targets don’t work
The belief in D&I targets is almost as strong as the resistance they often create. Based on new large-scale, international research, experts now confirm that a consistent, business-based sense-making will create the ‘acceptance’ required to make targets a success. What does it take to turn diversity into business benefits? New research suggests that preparing the organisational culture in regards to D&I is required before targets or structural support can have positive impact. Read More

EU NEWS

European Commission presents its achievements on combatting racism, xenophobia and discrimination
Ahead of the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality, Věra Jourová, present ed a report giving an overview of the Commission's actions to counter racism, xenophobia and discrimination in the EU during this mandate, as well as the remaining challenges in these areas. Read More

The EU Skills Profile Tool for Third Country Nationals - in action!
A new video shows how the tool has been used in a project of the Refugee Council in the Netherlands and showcases user experiences in the Public Employment Service in Slovenia. Watch

PUBLICATIONS

Le mentoring: la clé de l'inclusion socio-professionnelle des jeunes issus de l'immigration ?
Grâce à son programme de mentoring intergénérationnel et interculturel, DUO for a JOB a pu recueillir en cinq ans le témoignage de près de 1300 jeunes issus de l’immigration. Accompagner ces jeunes dans leur processus d’insertion socio-professionnelle a aussi permis de constater que des solutions existent et notamment le mentoring. Toutefois, la transition vers une société belge réellement inclusive ne pourra s’opérer qu’en repensant les dispositifs existants. Read More

New report: Lessons for effective national anti-racism policies
ENAR has been long engaged in calling EU Member States to develop strong comprehensive strategies against racism, be it against racist crimes, racial discrimination and for equality data in different areas of life. Acknowledging the important legislative framework that is currently in place in EU countries, such strategies are crucial to question their lack of implementation and push for more public policies that could come as a complement and tackle more structural forms of racism. Read More

New leaflet: how to promote inclusive employment ?
Mental Health Europe, together with other European organisations, produced a new leaflet on how to encourage inclusive employment. Access to work on the open labour market is a right that persons with disabilities (including people with psychosocial disabilities) are entitled to enjoy equally to others. Read More

A New Home at Work: an Employer’s Guide to Fostering Inclusion for Refugees in the Workplace
This guide draws on extensive primary, ethnographic research and established leading practices across diversity and inclusion and employee experience. Read More

With the support of

Funded by the European Union’s Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020), the Open Society Foundations, the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust.

The content of this newsletter cannot be considered to reflect the views of ENAR, the European Commission or any other body of the European Union, the Open Society Foundations, the Sigrid Rausing Trust, or the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust. The European Commission, the Open Society Foundations, the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the Joseph Rowntree Charitable Trust do not accept any responsibility for use that may be made of the information it contains.