For instance, prior to 2001 same-sex marriage was not legal in a single country; today it is legal in 29 countries. And on the career front, Accenture conducted a survey on more than 28,000 employees in organizations across 26 countries revealing that at the global level.
LGBT+ employees are just as likely as others to have reached the manager level, be satisfied with their progression, and aspire to senior leadership positions.
- 37% of LGBT+ employees taking part in our survey had reached manager level, versus 35% among non-LGBT+ respondents.
- 27% of LGBT+ employees aspire to be in a leadership position, and just 24% of other employees do.
As the world battles a pandemic, experts warn that the LGBT+ community is likely to disproportionately experience negative economic and health impacts such as job loss.
An Out Right Action International report predicts that this already vulnerable group will experience greater anxiety, fear of societal stigma, and risk of family violence.
- 77 out of 195 countries prohibit discrimination in employment because of one’s sexual orientation.
- According to the latest research, even in the most socially progressive countries only around 40% of LGBT+ employees are fully open about their gender identity/expression or sexual orientation at work—indicating that discomfort still abounds.
Though the data suggest a fair representation of LGBT+ employees among management, the survey questions dug deeper and found that behind the outward signs of progress, LGBT+ employees experience often unseen—but deeply felt— challenges and privately held fears on the job.
- 31% of LGBT+ employees are fully open about their gender identity/expression or sexual orientation at work. Even more worryingly, this figure falls to just 21% among those in senior leadership positions (“leaders”).
- 57 % which is more than half of employees believe that their gender identity/expression or their sexual orientation has slowed their progress at work.
As covered in another recent report from Accenture, ‘The Hidden Value of Culture Makers,’ the latest survey reveals a large gap between what leaders think is going on and what employees say is happening in their workplaces.
- Two-thirds (68%) of leaders feel they create empowering environments—in which employees can be themselves, raise concerns and innovate without fear of failure— but just one-third (36%) of employees agree.
- Only 14% of LGBT+ employees feel fully supported by their employer when it comes to issues like improving diversity of gender expression/sexual identity and being very welcoming to those who identify as LGBT+ at work.
- 19% of those who are not open about their gender identity/ expression or sexual orientation at work fear that they would be discriminated against if they opened up.
- Even among LGBT+ leaders, only half (57%) agree that their company is very welcoming toward other members of the LGBT+ community.
- More gender-balanced group of people, comprising 6% of leaders, runs organizations growing more than twice as fast on average than those of their peers and is ahead of the curve when it comes to promoting key factors that drive LGBT+ inclusion.
- 34 % of Culture Makers have personally campaigned for (or spoken publicly about) LGBT+ rights vs 19 % of all leaders.
- 88 % of Culture Makers believe that employees having the freedom to express their individuality is important in helping them thrive in the workplace, Vs. 69% of all leaders.
- 53% of Culture Makers work for a firm that has set a goal/target around employees feeling able to ‘be themselves’ at work, vs, 28% of all leaders.
- 50 % of Culture Makers believe that employees in their firm feel ‘completely safe’ to openly identify as LGBT+, vs 39 % of all leaders.
- More than two-thirds (71%) of them say ‘seeing people like me’ in senior leadership positions is important to helping them thrive.
- 71% say that the support of non-LGBT+ colleagues—allies—is important to their ability to enjoy being at work.
‘The Hidden Value of Culture Makers,’ published in March, used an econometric data model to identify 40 factors that influence advancement and characterize a culture of equality.
- Senior leaders must talk openly about their own personal issues and challenges to convey bold leadership.
- Comprehensive action should be taken to ensure that flexible working arrangements are not only available, but properly supported and encouraged.
- The workplace should be an empowering environment in which employees who are different from the majority are able to settle in quickly and thrive from the outset.
- That kind of empowering environment is also one in which employees are helped to understand that it’s OK to fail at work sometimes without fear or recrimination.
- Employees should feel safe raising concerns with (and about) leaders, especially when it comes to harassment and discrimination.
The findings and insights contained within this report are derived from online surveys that were fielded in 28 markets during October and November 2019 as part of Accenture’s broader Getting to Equal 2020 research program.
One survey was completed by more than 1,700 senior ‘leaders’ (C-suite and management committee in organizations with 50 or more employees), and the other was completed by more than 30,000 employees.
Unless otherwise indicated, all figures refer to global data. Note, however, that findings that relate specifically to ‘LGBT+’ or ‘Non-LGBT+’ employees are based on data from 26 (rather than 28) markets (28,000 employees).
