Only two in 10 employers have internal groups dedicated to diversity, according to a recent poll from the Society for Human Resource Management.
Human resources departments also serve an important role in encouraging diversity, regardless of whether employers rely on internal groups. In fact, 65 percent of respondents report their respective human resources department is responsible for implementing diversity initiatives, and 62 percent say the human resources department is responsible for leading diversity initiatives. The top executive level, such as a president or CEO, is the second most cited group that is in charge of implementing and leading diversity initiatives, at 21 percent.
"While internal diversity councils aren't the only way that an organization can move the needle around diversity and inclusion, these results are an indication of how few organizations are responding to the world's rapidly changing demographics in a proactive and meaningful way," says Eric Peterson, manager of diversity and inclusion at SHRM. "Clearly, we still have a lot of work to do."
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The survey also finds that in fiscal year 2010, only 16 percent of respondents have diversity training budgets while 29 percent of the 16 percent have separate diversity training budgets. Seventy-one percent calculate those costs into the overall training budget.
When comparing fiscal year 2011 to 2010, 75 percent of respondents say they kept the same diversity training budgets while 14 percent of respondents increased their budgets, and 10 percent of respondents decreased their budgets.
Fifty-five percent of respondents report having formal, written policies that focus on workplace sexual orientation discrimination. Thirty-six percent of respondents say they have no policies, formal or informal, and 9 percent use informal policies. For gender identity or gender expression, 21 percent of respondents follow written policies, though 79 percent of respondents do not.
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