Despite much progress in human rights in the world, it’s not always easy for members of the LGBT+ community to bring their whole selves to work. Studies indicate that 31% of gay men aged 18-25 return ‘to the closet’ (“To be in the closet” is a metaphor that refers to an LGBT person hiding their sexual orientation or gender identity from the people around them) when they start work, while 35% of LGBT+ employees feel compelled to lie about their personal lives at work. This fear of being outed can lead to feelings of anxiety, depression, guilt, and low self-esteem. And if the human angle to inclusion weren’t compelling enough, there’s also a business case. Studies reveal that employee engagement suffers by up to 30% for LGBT+ employees who feel they need to stay in the closet.
So, what can employers do better to support LGBT+ employees? And how can each of us be good allies? Sacha, Head Strategy and Business Operations APAC, based in Singapore, and Kirsty, Financial Controller in Guernsey, have reflected closely on these questions. What’s more, having both relocated to new environments during their long careers with Julius Baer, they offer an informed perspective on the ways different societies view LGBT+.
How have you experienced LGBT+ inclusiveness in the society around you?
Sacha: My experience as a member of the rainbow community in Singapore is quite different to Switzerland. Society here is built around traditional family values and it’s less common to come out to families. Yet, in other ways, it feels more inclusive here. I haven’t experienced any violence or hate speech, which may be down to how the locals view racial and religious harmony.
Kirsty: Guernsey was very far behind the UK on LGBT+ rights when I moved here from mainland England 23 years ago, but the island has made huge inroads in recent years. Same-sex marriage was finally introduced in 2017 and a discrimination law will be introduced this October to protect people in and out of the workplace. More than 3,000 people took part in the last Pride, which is not bad out of a total population of 65,000! You still hear the odd discriminatory comment, but mostly they come from the kind of people who protest against any changes.
What has been the most beautiful moment of inclusion at work for you?
Sacha: There have been many great moments, mostly when colleagues have understood who I am and invited me to talk openly about my life. It’s nice when people say things like “I went for a movie with my girlfriend, how’s your partner doing?” Like everybody, I occasionally enjoy discussing life outside the office. Before a recent event, my manager told me to bring my boyfriend along because his wife really wanted to meet him! Those kinds of comments are very including.
Kirsty: When Guernsey changed its marriage laws, I received lots of amazing comments from colleagues, many of whom realised I could finally get married to my partner after living on the island with her for 17 years! Colleagues who I barely knew came over to congratulate me and said it had made them reflect on the fact that I could only now get married to the person I loved. My desk was decorated with balloons, and before I got married colleagues and friends took me for a hen party on the nearby island of Herm. It was a wonderful outpouring of goodwill and affection.
What has encouraged you to be who you are?
Sacha: Coming out is a very personal decision but for me it was a huge relief. When you’re hiding part of yourself, you feel anxious. My parents took it in a really positive way. My grandmother even said she wanted to go dancing with me in a gay nightclub! I’m originally from Wallis, a devoutly Catholic region of Switzerland, but even there, society is more advanced than politicians think. Generally, people just want to interact happily with one another. You’ll always have an intolerant minority, but they tend to be unhappy about everything!
Kirsty: I was in my mid-20s before recognising that I was gay. It was a very difficult and confusing time in my life. When I came to Guernsey for the first time, nobody there knew me, but coming out was more or less thrust upon me because everybody on the island knew my partner from different sports clubs! That made things easier, in effect.
How could Julius Baer as an employer further support LGBT+ inclusion?
Sacha: People tend to accept things once they have become established in society. That’s why it’s important that the Bank keeps up its efforts to celebrate diversity. I’ve heard Bank employees raise concerns about the Bank displaying the Pride logo because some clients might not agree with it. Yet, I think clients will continue to bank with us because we provide a good service. Often the more sceptical views come from people who simply haven’t been exposed enough to the topic and don’t know how to deal with it.
Kirsty: Julius Baer is on the right track. The bank’s support for Pride is wonderful and we’re really showing that we’re an inclusive employer, for example when it comes to handling legal and administrative issues such as who you nominate to receive your pension. That definitely shows employer allyship and it has always made me feel safe and secure. While many of our clients may come from a demographic with certain values, their wealth will soon pass into the hands of future generations with different lifestyles and outlooks. As a bank and as a society, we need to make sure that we’re fit for that future. Serving a diverse client base necessarily requires you to have a diverse workforce too.
What, in your eyes, represents good allyship?
Sacha: Recently at a work dinner event, a new joiner who didn’t know the team asked my boyfriend if he also worked with Sacha. My boyfriend answered: “Yes, I’m very much part of his team!” We all had a good laugh about it, but the new colleague was very apologetic to me afterwards. But I hadn’t told him, so how should he have known? The important thing is to apply the same allyship in both directions: if a person is behaving intolerantly, call them out, but basically it’s just about everyone showing more understanding for one another.
Kirsty: I had a coffee recently with a colleague from the Diversity & Inclusion Committee. In his own words, he’s a privileged, middle-aged white man. But he and his wife have recently had a daughter and he joined the Committee because he wants her to grow up to be whoever she wants to be, whatever she wants to be, wherever she wants to be. That’s the world I’d like us to try to achieve, also in the workplace. We join together to find ways of achieving the Bank’s strategy while embracing each other in all our individuality.
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