Employers must ensure their business doesn’t discriminate against anyone, including customers, clients, and workers. This entails implementing effective and impartial recruitment and HR processes, particularly in addressing workplace discrimination.
As Lotas Legal’s expertise in workplace discrimination law shows, there are various ways that discrimination can occur in a working environment. Even if discrimination occurs unintentionally, it can have a devastating impact on the people affected. Furthermore, a discrimination claim can also have a long-lasting impact on businesses. To learn more, take a look at these four ways a workplace discrimination claim can damage your brand:
Staff Morale
When discrimination occurs, it affects the staff as a whole. Even when one individual has been discriminated against, the entire workforce can be indirectly affected. If the discrimination becomes public knowledge, other staff may feel disillusioned or disappointed in their employer.
This hurts staff morale, which in turn affects motivation, productivity, and efficiency. Ultimately, a single incident of discrimination can have a company-wide impact that affects the organisation for months or years.
Financial Loss
The law grants individuals the right to pursue legal action against an employer if they experience workplace discrimination. If someone claims you, you may be compelled to negotiate a settlement to avoid the case going to court. Alternatively, you might defend the claim and mount a legal defence. If so, you’ll have legal expenses to consider, as well as the cost of compensation if you lose the case.
This can be significant for any commercial organisation, but it can be particularly damaging for small and medium-sized enterprises, which may not have the financial resources to resolve these claims.
Lost Sales
If your customers or clients become aware of discriminatory conduct or practices within your organisation, you can expect to lose significant sales or contracts. People won’t want to buy or trade with an organisation that discriminates against people, regardless of what type of discrimination occurs. While you may work hard to acquire customers and clients, a single instance of discrimination can lead to the loss of both and the revenue they generate.
Negative Image
If your brand becomes associated with discrimination, it will become part of your image, whether you intend it to or not. While rebranding may help minimise the damage, it can be a costly process in its own right. Furthermore, even extensive rebranding efforts may not be enough to rectify your business after a highly publicised discrimination claim.
Protecting Your Business and Your Workers
By ensuring that your workplace and organisation do not tolerate discriminatory conduct, you can protect your brand and workforce. Introducing appropriate staff training and ensuring you have processes in place to promote equality in the workplace are simple yet effective ways to be proactive about preventing discrimination within your organisation. When you take steps to create a more equal working environment, you’ll be safeguarding your brand and your business, but you’ll also be doing your part to end workplace discrimination.
