Equality Diversity and Inclusion for the Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter

This report is the culmination of a three-year project examining the impact of the Manchester Good Employment Charter on participating organisations. EDI is recognised as vital for creating positive workplace cultures and staff recruitment, retention and attrition, contributing to organisational success. Despite this, it isn’t always clear to employers how best to embed good practice. Through a multi-stakeholder lens, this research explores key challenges and opportunities, setting out key recommendations for how charter initiatives can support employers to foster inclusive workplace cultures.

Key findings

By reviewing participant reflections about good work, the research highlighted the value of focusing on the following key charter characteristics when seeking to advance the EDI agenda to support more inclusive workplace cultures. These centered around the following: 

• Secure Work: Importance of inclusive language and providing training for all staff.
• Flexible Work: Need for fairness in flexible working arrangements and balancing business needs.
• Pay: Ensuring fair pay and progression opportunities, supporting employee financial wellbeing.
• Engagement and Voice: Creating a culture of trust and belonging, involving employees in EDI issues.
• Recruitment: Addressing biases in recruitment processes and promoting values-based recruitment.
• People Management: Training managers in EDI, promoting allyship, and ensuring compassionate leadership.
• Health and Wellbeing: Providing support for long-term health issues and creating a culture of care.

This work has been funded by the IGN and The Greater Manchester Good Employment Charter. IGN implementation advice provides bespoke delivery support, tailored to member needs, which helps to unlock projects that foster inclusive growth. The report was originally published by Manchester Metropolitan University, available here.