Every day, more companies are seeking to develop and implement initiatives that bring Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) to the workplace. According to a study conducted by the Brazil Identity Institute (IDBR), diversity today is synonymous with innovation, better results, empathy, psychological safety, inclusion, equality, and higher productivity. As a result, the Brazil-Germany Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Paraná (AHK Paraná) created the Diversity & Inclusion Committee, which facilitates the exchange of experiences and promotes the strategies that member companies are adopting to combat gender stereotypes and discrimination.
Stimulating a work environment that values and respects all people, promoting both the success of employees and that of the organization itself, is the goal of companies. According to the IDBR, for every 10% increase in ethnic-racial diversity, there is a nearly 4% jump in company productivity. The same was also recorded with gender diversity. This increase also reflects in the company's economic sector. The study found that for each 1 percentage point increase in ethnic-racial diversity in service companies, business productivity increased by 0.19%. In commercial entities, the increase was 0.16%.
The Committee created by the Chamber is coordinated by members Melina Fachin, lawyer at Fachin Advogados Associados, Claudia Cadenas, CEO of Via Humana Consultoria and by the Human Resources coordinator at Schwan Cosmetics do Brasil, Carla Grolla, who will hold periodic meetings to discuss ageism in the workplace, gender equality, LGBTQIA+ inclusion, racism and the inclusion of people with disabilities (PCD's).
“The topics will be discussed so that people can understand the needs of different groups and embrace relevant issues that bring more knowledge and information to break with sexism, racism, homophobia and other forms of prejudice rooted in society. Our goal is to create a culture of inclusion in which all voices are heard and respected, feel valued and have the same opportunities within companies,” explains Claudia Cadenas.
Implementing measures to make a company inclusive is not simple. Leaders must have a genuine commitment to equality and inclusion, because according to Melina Fachin, creating a truly inclusive environment will bring changes to all company processes, from hiring to the daily lives of workers.
“It is necessary to implement practices that ensure the hiring of people from diverse social groups, eliminating prejudices and barriers. In addition to offering regular training on diversity and inclusion to all employees, to raise awareness and reduce prejudices, in order to create an environment where all employees feel valued and respected, regardless of their differences. The company also needs to ensure that everyone has the same opportunities for growth and development and establish metrics to monitor progress in terms of diversity and inclusion and adjust strategies as necessary,” says the lawyer.
For Carla Grolla, the Diversity & Inclusion Committee of AHK Paraná allows members to analyze the opinions of various people from different areas and with diverse cases, enabling exchange and work in favor of the development process. In addition to promoting the topic in companies that have not yet addressed it in their context."The work of the AHK Committee is to promote meetings on emerging topics related to diversity among members and thus ensure that this spreads within companies, making it possible to build a more just and inclusive society."
Created at the beginning of 2024, the Committee has already held two meetings: one to discuss gender equality within companies and another to discuss the inclusion of PCDs, which saw strong participation from AHK Paraná members. The idea of the coordinators is to hold two more meetings in 2024, which do not yet have predefined topics.
