A recent report from the University of Nottingham explains that allowing people to work flexibly can make workplaces more diverse and inclusive. This report also discovered that drinking too much alcohol at work events can lead to unfair treatment, discrimination, and harassment.

“In order for any workplaces to achieve their ambitious aims for EDI in the workplace, it’s incredibly important that industries wholeheartedly benchmark their progress,” the researchers explain.

Becoming more inclusive

Many people (75%) think that letting employees work flexibly is a good way to make workplaces fairer. Some folks feel safer working from home, especially if they don’t always feel like they fit in at the office. But there’s a downside: when people work from home, they might not get noticed as much and could miss out on career opportunities.

Having too much to drink at work events can lead to problems like exclusion and harassment. It can make issues like sexism, racism, and unwanted behavior even worse.

About 37% of the people in the study saw or experienced bad behavior at work, like sexist comments or racist actions. Some people felt like they were treated unfairly because of their accents.

Held back

More than half of women and people from different ethnic backgrounds said that their career progress was held back because of their gender or race. Women often had to work harder to prove themselves, and they struggled to get their ideas heard. Some even noticed that men with less experience were earning more and getting promoted faster. Some people decided to leave their jobs or planned to leave because they felt undervalued or left out.

The study also found that companies tend to hire and promote people who are similar to them, which isn’t fair. While the research focused on the UK insurance industry, its lessons can apply to many other types of workplaces in the UK and around the world.

“Bringing about inclusive cultures is a long-term process requiring careful analysis and monitoring of—and, where applicable, changes to—all aspects of an organization, such as senior leadership appointments and customer-facing operations,” the authors conclude.