Business welcomes new equality commission

The CBI welcomed the launch of the Commission for Equality and Human Rights (CEHR) today (Monday) and emphasised employers' commitment to diversity and equality.

Susan Anderson, Director of HR policy for the CBI said: We have come a long way since the setting up of the first equality commissions. The equal pay gap has shrunk from 34% in 1970 to 13% today, disabled people are almost twice as likely to be in work than they were 20 years ago and the British workplace is more ethnically diverse than ever. New rights on age, sexual orientation and religious belief have also been successfully introduced.

The CBI is calling on the new body to make high quality information, advice and guidance on promoting diversity in the workplace its first priority. Over 1,000 pages of guidance were churned out by the Commission's predecessor bodies dealing with sex, race and disability rights, making it exceptionally hard for firms, especially smaller ones without dedicated HR teams, who want to do the right thing.

According to the 2007 CBI/Pertemps Employment Trends Survey, over two thirds (68%) of employers think clear and simple guidance should be the first priority for the CEHR. And practical advice and support, in addition to written guidance, was seen as a must by a further quarter of employers (23%).

Susan Anderson added:

Companies look forward to working with Trevor Philips and his team - we recognise that there is no room for complacency. We need more women and ethnic minorities in the boardrooms of Britain, more high quality part-time jobs and more disabled people in work. But, if we want to close the equality gap, the CEHR must be a partner for employers, not just a policeman.

To achieve that, the new Commission must put simplifying guidance for business at the top of its priority list. Between them, the existing equality commissions produced over 1,000 pages of guidance and many employers, small ones in particular, are quite simply overwhelmed.

If it achieves all these things, the CEHR will be seen as the truly integrated, 'one-stop-shop' that was promised.