Close to our heart, as always, are the concerns of LGBT people.
Especially in terms of what LGBT people - and their ‘allies’ at work who support them - are thinking about the Trump years to come.
Out Now has just completed a look at how a Trump administration is expected to impact on LGBT inclusion in the workplace.
In November 2016, Out Now sampled just under 900 LGBT people and their workplace allies to gauge both their mood and their concerns.
To say that LGBT people - in both the UK and the US - are 'strongly' concerned about the potential negative impacts of a Trump administration on LGBT workplace inclusion is an understatement.
The findings reveal strongly held concerns - as well as what employers can do to allay these concerns, while strengthening their competitive position in the talent marketplace.
You can download the report 2016 USA Election LGBT Reactions
Top 5 Findings employers need to know
1. Day-to-day life for LGBT people is expected to worsen - The respondents were strongly convinced that day-to-day life is going to get worse in US society for LGBT people. Trump’s rhetoric on the campaign trail was seen as giving license to people who may hold resentment towards LGBT people to become more openly homophobic.
2. LGBT people expected to find it harder to ‘come out’ at work - More than three out of four respondents expect it to get harder for LGBT people to be open with work colleagues about their gender identity or sexual orientation. Out Now’s research shows that factor can also have strong negative impacts on most corporations' bottom-line results.
3. Mike Pence - The VP chosen by Trump has a reportedly poor history of alleged anti-LGBT statements and actions. Respondents mentioned his name almost as often as Trump’s (as is clear from the WordCloud on the report’s cover) and are very concerned about his potential impacts on the Trump administration when it comes to continuing - or stopping - Obama’s overt policies of LGBT inclusion.
4. The Trump/Pence team is overall seen as “a bad thing” for LGBT people - A strong majority of respondents perceive the election result as ‘bad’ for LGBT inclusion.
5. More inclusive workplaces can expect to prosper in the hunt for top talent - Three out of every four respondents ‘strongly agree’ that it will become more necessary for corporations to activate workplace inclusion policies that support and protect equal rights for LGBT employees. Understanding LGBT people's concerns is the first step to knowing how to best react to strategically position a workplace to win advantages in the competition for attracting and retaining top workforce talent.