EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY

For the last two years it has been a great privilege for me to be Chief Executive of this Agency.  Many of you know that I spent my career before this working in several different charities concerned with social and health disadvantage, so I have a lot of experience of working with people with different capabilities and limitations. When I started out, people we now think of as having disabilities were very much the object of pity or sympathy, or even derision.  But think of the achievements of Team GB in the Beijing Paralympics and ask yourself if sympathy, pity or derision is the right idea.

In recent years there has been a flood of laws covering all aspects of diversity and sometimes we seem to be overwhelmed by it. But to me, laws or no laws, diversity simply means recognising ‘difference’ and giving people the value they deserve. Some of these differences are recognised by the law and as employers we tend to focus on race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion and age.    

It’s a matter of social justice of course, not treating people as  inferior in some other way because of ‘difference’. The society we live in has changed so much that most of us now live and work side-by-side with people whose language, colour, religion or sexual orientation might once have made us feel very uncomfortable or even threatened.  And of course the people we rescue, and the seafarers and the shipping companies we support represent every possible shade of difference from right around the globe. We serve all of them equally without a second thought.

So it’s also good business. And if we ignore the talent around us, we won’t achieve the full potential of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. We’re struggling to recruit to many vacancies around the coast and at HQ – accepting that different people have something to bring to the party can give us more strength for our complex tasks.

So first of all it’s a matter of human decency, then it’s good business sense. But as an Executive Agency of the Department for Transport we are a public authority and unlike the private sector, we have obligations that have to be seen to be met. This is particularly true for the public duties for race, gender and disability. We need to have action plans to cover each of these and to meet high standards when it comes to managing and promoting both equality and diversity.

A lot has already been achieved by the MCA as an employer. As a provider of key safety services to the shipping industry and the public, our customers have diverse needs and requirements which must also be met. This can involve making reasonable adjustments to ensure that disabled customers can get into our buildings or can read documents on our website.  Others may have difficulties speaking English and we in turn may have problems communicating with somebody who has learning difficulties. It’s our job as a public authority to deal with these issues and ensure that we provide an outstanding service to everyone, whether they’re external customers, or our own staff who may need services from colleagues.

Wherever we work and whatever our job, diversity should affect us all. I’ve seen with my own eyes the benefits that come from embracing diversity. As Chief Executive I am responsible for promoting diversity and equality, and I am pleased to do so.  

I believe that we should train hard and fight easy. If additional training is needed then we will provide it, but training on its own is not sufficient.  Support from the top is also needed and our management teams will provide this.

If you would like to contribute in some way please speak to your manager, or contact our Talent and Diversity Team.