• Its objective is to analyze the practices organizations apply to manage the diversity of their workforces and stakeholders, as well as the trends they follow in this area.
• In this first barometer, 102 companies employing 252,857 professionals were analyzed.
Foundation for Diversity, through the analysis of the "Development Report" intended to renew the signing of the Diversity Charter, aims to establish the Barometer of Diversity in Work Environments (BDEL).
It arose from the need faced by companies that, over the past decade, have undergone a series of social and demographic changes, making it essential to position diversity management as a strategic tool that contributes to the profitability and sustainability of organizations.
Published every two years, this Barometer aims to identify trends in the initiatives and practices organizations apply to manage the diversity of their workforces and stakeholders. It will also provide an opportunity to adapt the Foundation's activities and projects in the areas of diversity management where organizations have the greatest weaknesses, as well as to promote and disseminate best practices and trends.
Foundation for Diversity expects that, by the end of 2016, the number of questionnaires analyzed will constitute a sufficient sample to provide comparisons by autonomous communities, number of employees, and sectors.
In this first barometer, 102 companies employing 252,857 professionals have been analyzed. Their size distribution consists of 26% small businesses, 26% medium-sized businesses, and 48% large companies. All of them answered the various sets of standard questions used to develop the Barometer's indicators (BDEL).
Some findings from the 1st Barometer of Diversity in Work Environments (BDEL):
• The workforce is distributed so that men and women account for 60% and 40%, respectively. This figure shows that gender equality is becoming more balanced. However, the average representation of women in executive management falls to 34%, while men's stands at 66%. When we focus on women's representation in executive positions by company size, we find that women hold 46.3% of executive positions in small companies, with a percentage decrease of 18 points in large companies. Therefore, the BDEL indicates that the analyzed companies' main gender-related weakness remains the gap between men and women at the highest levels of the companies.
• Focusing on the different generations, the largest groups are in the 30–40 age range, at 38%, and the 40–50 age range, at 28%. The analysis highlights the need to prioritize generational diversity management in order to achieve the greatest efficiency from the knowledge and skills of each of the four generations present in the workplace. The figures do not vary substantially when analyzed by company size, with the highest employment rate among people aged 30–40: 44.3% in small companies, 34.5% in medium-sized companies, and 32.47% in large companies.
• The BDEL shows that 100% of companies subject to the requirement comply with disability regulations, but only 32% do so through direct hiring. When analyzing this dimension by company size, we find that 91% of large companies hire people with disabilities, compared with 58% of the surveyed medium-sized companies and only 8% of small companies. This makes it necessary to implement specific programs to promote increased hiring and compliance with regulations, particularly among medium-sized companies.
• Regarding specific work–life balance programs, 89% of companies have flexible working policies, and 93% confirm that work requirements are adapted to their employees' needs. Finally, paternity/maternity programs are established in 7 out of 10 companies analyzed, while support programs for employees with disabilities are in place in 6 out of 10.
• Another indicator analyzed by the BDEL shows that only 34% of companies provide diversity training and awareness programs for their entire workforce. It is worth emphasizing that training and awareness are vital aspects that must be applied across the organization.
Overall, Foundation for Diversity is optimistic about these initial results, since 100% of organizations recognize the need to have a diverse workforce. To this end, their recruitment processes establish mechanisms to eliminate these imbalances. Although there is still a long way to go, everything indicates that diversity management is beginning to position itself as one of the main challenges of corporate policy.
