Pride is where we come together to celebrate our LGBTQ+ communities, recognize the issues that continue to occur in many parts of the world and commit to make ERM a place where you can be yourself."
Louise Pearce
Global Account Director, ERM
LGBTQ+ pride
Photo credit: ERM Harrogate, United Kingdom
As part of ERM's commitment to building an inclusive culture, June is our dedicated month for observing Pride and celebrating our lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, pansexual and ally (LGBTQ+) community.
Pride is the positive stance against discrimination and violence toward LGBTQ+ people to promote their self-affirmation, dignity, equality rights, increase their visibility as a social group, build community, and celebrate sexual diversity and gender variance. Although there have been many positive steps towards an equal world for our LGBTQ+ colleagues, there are still places where they suffer discrimination every day, and for whom the fight is far from over. ERM wants to be a safe space where everyone can bring their full self to work and this means being safe from discrimination with equal access to opportunities.
Following on from Global Inclusion Week 2020, which ERM celebrates in May, we continued to explore Pride month with our theme of All Inclusive: Respect. Accept. Empower. We know that achieving our aspiration for our inclusive culture will not be possible if we work in isolation. It requires the involvement of both members of the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. Some of the other ways ERM is supporting our LGBTQ+ employees include:
- LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group
Our ERG supports the ERM LGBT+ community and its allies. The group creates connection and share resources and support. - LGBTQ+ Traveler Resources
LGBT+ travelers can face unique challenges when traveling abroad. This page shares resources and training to help LGBT+ employees to travel safely abroad without inadvertently falling foul of any local laws or practices. - Including pronouns in corporate email signatures
All employees have the option of including their pronouns in their email signature. This helps colleagues and those we interact with over email know how we identify. This is not mandatory and entirely at each employee's discretion. - Local office observance sessions
As with previous years, local offices around the world hosted online sessions in support of Pride, which was a great opportunity for everyone to get involved in the conversation.