India Inc shakes up policies to be more queer-friendly

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION are driving a rethink of corporate policies around the world, with recruitment drives, job fairs, medical and insurance policies, HR counselling, common facilities like gender-neutral washrooms supporting a conducive work environment for the differently-abled and LGBTQI+ employees.

- VAISHALI DAR

"Diversity is not just about gender but includes different cohorts of people who are underrepresented today. We provide opportunities when they enter the workspace with specific training to bring the equity they would need to have a level playing field with everyone else," says Deepti Varma, VP-PXT (people, experience & technology), Amazon Stores India, Japan and Emerging Markets.

Accenture India has a six-month internship programme that helps build a skilled talent pool of transgender people to assess prospective candidates for full-time roles.

Pernod Ricard India Foundation (PRIF), in partnership with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and the Collective Good Foundation (CGF), launched India's first academic-corporate fellowship programme for the transgender community last year.

"All 14 are currently doing internships with various corporate houses. Through this transformation fellowship, we enable the community to craft a career path in the corporate world. We plan to launch ERGs (employee resource groups) for the LGBTQ and an inclusive communication guide has been developed to help team members communicate with the LGBTQ persons," says proud transwoman Zainab Patel, who is lead, inclusion and diversity, Pernod Ricard India.

For a sense of belonging and acceptance among employees, NatWest Group runs multiple sensitisation sessions throughout the year, and recently launched an all-inclusive mentoring programme focused on reverse mentoring for NatWest leadership.