Calls for increased diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have been growing around the globe. A Glassdoor survey found that 3 in 4 job seekers prefer diverse companies and coworkers, while a Gartner poll of CIOs found that 75% of businesses believe it is a priority to them.
However, a Trailant report titled “How to Build an Effective DEI Program” found that only 42% of firms actually take ownership of their DEI program. This means that many simply pay lip service to diversity, equity, and inclusion during recruitment.
As a progressive employer, you can embrace inclusivity and bolster your DEI efforts by championing body diversity in the workplace. Body diversity is an often overlooked element of DEI, yet many prospective employees are rejected due to their appearance.
Why Does DEI Matter?
As a small business owner, you’re probably engrossed with the everyday running of your company. You have to oversee your employees, sign off on new hires, and manage an ever-growing enterprise. You may be hard-pressed for time, too, which could leave you wondering why DEI and other socially responsible actions are so important.
Championing DEI in the workplace can protect your long-term profitability and will help you make a difference in your community. Community leadership programs that foreground DEI are inherently empowering and can lead to community development in your area. This is good for your business, as you’ll receive a steady flow of highly motivated employees, and create a lasting change in your area.
Creating a robust DEI policy or hiring a DEI consultant can help you build a reputation as a people-first employer, too. This is particularly important if you want to hire younger staff, who may be more likely to have bright hair, tattoos, or facial piercings.
By embracing body diversity, you show that you care about the personality of your people more than the way they look. This approach also helps you connect with modern consumers, who appreciate seeing staff who can bring their authentic selves to work.
At Growth Hackers, we worked with a small business from Los Angeles that implemented a structured DEI-focused employer branding strategy, which led to a 27% increase in qualified job applications and a 16% improvement in employee retention rates.
Body Diversity
You know that your employees perform at their best when they feel safe and secure in their position. However, many people feel victimized on the basis of their physical appearance. Some feel maligned due to co-workers’ comments about their size, while others may feel put out by being told they have to cover up tattoos at work.
As a progressive employer, there are a few types of body discrimination that you should be aware of. Typically, folks will face body shaming due to their:
- Weight
- Tattoos
- Body hair
- Clothing
- Body modifications
Passing comments about body hair or clothing can have a lasting impact on an employee’s mental health and well-being. Left unchecked, body shaming can amount to bullying. This can cause a downward spiral in productivity at your place of work and may lead to expensive lawsuits if you’re found guilty of fostering harassment or discrimination.
Body shaming can also undermine your next recruitment drive. Potential applicants may feel pressured to change their appearance for interviews and could be put off by calls to remove piercings. Similarly, some prospective employees may feel uncomfortable applying if you only use images of folks who align with traditional beauty standards, while others may cover up their tattoos for fear that their ink will reflect poorly on them.
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Virgin Atlantic Case Study
Big businesses like Virgin Atlantic prove that you can embrace body diversity, even if you work in a service-oriented business. The airline recently announced that they would relax their tattoo and piercing policy for cabin crew, and now encourage all staff to bring their “true selves” to work.
Virgin Atlantic used the policy change to create a successful advertorial campaign. Their “See the World Differently” campaign focuses on celebrating the people who make their cabins special and highlights uniforms designed by Vivienne Westwood. This helps Virgin stand out from more antiquated competitors, who still insist on minimal piercings and cover-ups for tattoos.
You can follow in Virgin Atlantic’s footsteps by creating people-first branded content that will resonate with modern consumers and utilizing HR templates that are widely available. This kind of content is particularly effective today, as many consumers care more about DEI than they do about “professional” attire. Over time, letting employees bring their true selves to work will strengthen your brand, improve morale, and help you bring on more talented employees.
Genuine Risks
Nose studs and long, dyed hair may help your employees feel like themselves at work. However, you need to balance risk against reward if you work in an industry where accidents can happen.
Unfortunately, some body modifications come with health risks. Ear piercings and belly button rings can snag on equipment at work and cause traumatic injuries that force employees to take time off. Similarly, branding and sub-dermal implants may become infected if they aren’t cared for correctly, as the skin is sensitive to sudden changes.
Support prospective employees by establishing a clear policy for body modifications before bringing on new staff. Employees who have piercings or implants shouldn’t be made to feel like an inconvenience, either. Instead, make a few strategic changes to your place of work to reduce the risk of piercings snagging on equipment, or tearing while employees use machinery.
You may find that the risk of injury is simply not worthwhile. In this case, be clear that you want to support body diversity at work, but cannot bring on folks who may be at a heightened risk of injury. This is particularly important in industries like manufacturing, where piercings should be removed before employees begin their shift. Just try to work with employees before blanket-banning body modifications, as your employees may have some suggestions to improve safety at work.
Balancing Tradition with Modernization
If you run a family business focused on traditional values, you may be hesitant to bring on applicants with blue hair, tattoos, and split tongues. However, the best traditional businesses move with the times and do everything they can to find and retain top talent. Rather than hyper-focusing on your differences, try to create a positive environment where folks feel welcome at work.
If you find yourself struggling to connect with folks who look a little different, you may need to challenge your own biases. Despite traditional beliefs, tattoos, piercings, and dyed hair aren’t a sign of delinquency or the dereliction of social standards. Some of the most successful people sport a range of tattoos and piercings, including:
- Justin Trudeau
- Jack Dorsey
- Caroline Kennedy
- Simone Biles
These highly successful individuals show that having a tattoo or piercing has no impact on one’s ability to pursue a career. As more people embrace tattooing, we may even see future politicians and business leaders embrace their ink and show that individualizing your body is a sign of acceptance and self-expression.
At Growth Hackers, we partnered with a traditional family business from New York City that was struggling to attract modern talent, so we helped them reframe their culture to be more inclusive while preserving their legacy values, which led to a 32% increase in applications and a 21% improvement in employee retention.
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Inclusive Language
As a progressive employer, you have to stay on top of demeaning or disparaging language in the workplace. This is particularly important during recruitment, when subtle language choices may deter prospective candidates from applying.
Do your best to foreground inclusive language while writing recruitment adverts. Try to include skill-based requirements and take the focus off the personality traits or values you’re looking for. This may feel a little strange at first, but statements like “We’re looking for a hard-working employee with traditional values” are almost certain to deter folks who have a body modification or a prominent tattoo.
Include a short statement that reiterates your DEI policy within your job advert. This is a clear signal to the prospective employees that you care more about their qualifications and experience than their physical appearance. Be prepared to answer follow-up questions, as some folks may still be a little apprehensive about showing body hair or keeping their piercings in. Reassure these applicants and be clear that their appearance won’t affect their application.
When you interview applicants, do not pass comments on their physical appearance, and instruct your fellow interviewers to ignore things like body size, hair color, or tattoos. Instead, focus your time and effort on understanding the person behind the application. This will ensure that you don’t inadvertently reject qualified applicants on the grounds of their nose ring or their hair dye.
If you include images in your recruitment materials, be sure to represent a range of body types and appearances. This will help applicants see themselves in your job posting and may convince folks to apply to your firm. Inclusive imagery reflects well on your brand, too, as it proves that you encourage employees to bring their authentic selves to work and ultimately will boost employee engagement from within your organization.
Final Words on Inclusive Recruiting and Embracing Diversity
Embracing body diversity can supercharge your next recruitment drive and help you run a more inclusive business. Start with simple steps, like posting images that represent a range of body types and removing language that could body-shame potential applicants. This will strengthen your application materials and ensure that you don’t accidentally deter otherwise qualified candidates.
Follow up by foregrounding your commitment to body diversity in your application materials with a short statement that reiterates your DEI policy. This will help folks figure out that you’re the kind of employer that champions their people — regardless of their appearance.
Growth Hackers is an experienced growth hacking agency helping businesses from all over the world grow. There is no fluff with Growth Hackers. We help entrepreneurs and business owners unlock diverse talent and ignite success with inclusive hiring, increase their productivity, generate qualified leads, optimize their conversion rate, gather and analyze data analytics, acquire and retain users and increase sales.
We go further than brand awareness and exposure. We make sure that the strategies we implement move the needle so your business grow, strive and succeed. If you too want your business to reach new heights, contact Growth Hackers today so we can discuss about your brand and create a custom growth plan for you. You’re just one click away to skyrocket your business.
