Actionable Tips to Make Your Workplace More Inclusive
July 14th is International Non-Binary People’s Day! As we celebrate the diversity of our community and the contributions of non-binary individuals, let’s take a moment to consider what you can do in your workplace to make it more welcoming for everyone. Below are 3 simple suggestions of things you can do to make your workplace more inclusive.
Instead of “preferred pronouns,” simply say “pronouns.”
The phrase “preferred pronouns” has become popular in the last few years. While it stems from the best of intentions, avoid using this phrase. Someone’s pronouns are not what they prefer, they are how they identify. By calling them preferred, it implies that the pronouns are optional, which they are not. This is a simple tweak that could mean a lot!
Update your email signatures to include pronouns.
Including your pronouns is something many people have started to do on social media sites like Facebook and LinkedIn. Consider making this inclusion a company-wide effort by putting them in your email signatures! Including your pronouns helps to make sure that people aren’t making assumptions about your gender identity just by looking at your first name. However, we recommend keeping this optional – be mindful that making this a requirement for all employees could cause discomfort for your employees that may not be ready to identify their pronouns to their colleagues. The goal is to be inclusive and create a welcoming environment, not one that makes any of your team members uncomfortable with pronoun selection.
Change and improve your internal work systems.
One of the systems that have lagged in modern gender identification is the healthcare system. As much as possible, we should begin to change these practices so that everyone can accurately identify themselves. At PrestigePEO, users can select from several gendered options to supply accurate information about themselves when signing up for services like health insurance. Having to choose between male and female when you are nonbinary is demoralizing, so updating these systems could mean a lot to your non-binary employees.
These are just a few ways that you can create inclusivity at your workplace! We hope these suggestions are helpful, and we encourage you to reach out to us if you have any questions.
