Touchstone has been placed 20th in the Stonewall Top 100 Employers, which lists the best employers for lesbian, gay, bi and trans staff. Now in its fourteenth year, the list celebrates the pioneering efforts of leading organisations to create inclusive workplaces and is compiled from submissions to the Workplace Equality Index.
“Touchstone is delighted to be named a Stonewall Top 100 LGBT-Friendly employer for the fifth year running; being placed 20th nationally. This huge honour would not have been possible without the passion and bravery of all our staff who fight for the right to individuality for all our communities every day and who proudly bring their authentic selves to work. Thank you too to Stonewall who have supported Touchstone every step of the way and who enable us to be unashamedly ambitious in our quest to be a safe and tolerant employer for every member of staff, every day of every year” said Alison Lowe, Touchstone Chief Executive.
The Workplace Equality Index is free to enter for any employer. Each entrant compiles a submission demonstrating their organisation’s performance against a set of best practice criteria.
To supplement evidence submitted by employers, Stonewall also seeks feedback directly from the entrants’ employees. This year Stonewall received over 92,000 responses to the employee survey, making it one of the largest national employment surveys in Britain.
Darren Towers, Executive Director, Stonewall said: “Touchstone and all those who have made this year’s Top 100 Employers list have done a fantastic job. Taking part in our Index shows real commitment to understanding and advancing LGBT equality. This year, for the first time, the Index looked at what employers were doing for trans equality in the workplace. This work is crucial. We recently published LGBT in Britain: Trans Report, which revealed the profound inequality facing trans people in Britain today. Half of trans people have hidden their identity at work for fear of discrimination. This must change and it’s encouraging to see so many organisations make a commitment to trans equality. With their support and hard work we can create a world where all lesbian, gay, bi and trans employees are welcomed and accepted without exception.”
Josh Willacy, Stonewall’s lead for Yorkshire, said: “It is brilliant to see Touchstone in the Stonewall Top 100 for the fifth time, the organisation’s commitment to being LGBT inclusive through innovative work, inclusive leadership and effective collaboration is remarkable. This has been our most challenging Workplace Equality Index to date and Touchstone continues to set the bar both for the sector and region. To be recognised in this way is a real achievement and is very well deserved.”
