Tolerance, openness to others and building diversity are undoubtedly extremely important issues. Especially taking into account new phenomena on the labor market, such as, among others: the fight for talents, the increasing number of foreigners working in Poland and demographic changes.

According to data provided by the Central Statistical Office, in the second quarter of 2023, the number of people working in our country amounted to 16.85 million. This is a huge and diverse group. Looking only in terms of age: as many as four generations cooperate with each other in the current labor market: Baby Boomer, X, Y and Z. And yet, professionally active people also include people of different gender, psychosexual orientation, nationality, views and many other factors building diversity. So how do we find our way in an increasingly diverse work environment? To answer this question, Pracuj.pl conducted a study „Diversity in the workplace” on a group of 1,860 Poles, and its results are below.

The most important data resulting from the study:

• 79 percent respondents believe that employees should be assessed solely on the basis of competences and achievements.
• This approach to employee evaluation is more common among women (84%) than men (74%).
• 8 out of 10 respondents declare that cooperation with a person of a different nationality is not a problem for them.
• For 80 percent respondents, a different gender of the superior is not an obstacle to cooperation.
• 56 percent confirms that their employer makes sure that everyone feels good in the workplace.

The survey results clearly indicate that Polish employees are open, tolerant and believe that skills are the most important at work. As much as 79 percent respondents confirm that employees should be assessed solely on the basis of competences and achievements.

However, these results are not identical among the entire group of respondents. Comparing women and men, we see a significant difference: 84% agree with the statement that only competences and skills should be assessed in the workplace. women and 74 percent men. We can notice an even greater difference when comparing the youngest and oldest generations on the labor market. Among people aged 18-24, the number of positive indications is 68%, and among respondents aged 55-65 – as many as 86%.

For Polish employees, issues related to diversity among the people they regularly cooperate with are not a problem. 71 percent respondents indicate that a different psychosexual orientation of a co-worker is not an obstacle for them in working together. 73 percent respondents perceive cooperation with people with different political views in the same way, and as many as 77 percent he sees no problem in working with people of different nationalities. Women achieve higher positive results in answers to these questions. The largest difference between the answers of women and men, as much as 13 percentage points, is observed in the question regarding psychosexual orientation. Positive responses from women are 78%, while in the case of men it is 65%. A slightly smaller difference, 11 percentage points, appears in answers to the question about cooperation with people of other nationalities. Here, too, women have higher positive responses (82% compared to 71% in the case of men).

In terms of age, the most positive indications are among the oldest group, i.e. people aged 55-65.

– The Polish labor market is becoming more and more diverse. Currently, there are four generations there, and each of them looks at the issue of career differently and approaches achieving their professional goals in a different way. We also have more and more people from abroad, especially from Ukraine, but not only. It is also important that remote work has made it possible to employ people from any country. Taking this into account, we are very pleased to see such positive indications regarding the acceptance of diversity. Such attitudes certainly have a positive impact on the atmosphere at work. They also translate directly into the possibility of cooperation, efficiency and joint achievement of goals – says Agnieszka Bieniak, HR director at Pracuj.pl, commenting on the study results.

Cooperation with people of different nationality, gender or beliefs is an important issue. What is the Poles’ approach to diversity in the context of relationships with their superiors? It turns out that we are open in this aspect too. As much as 78 percent respondents indicated that it was not a problem for them to be subordinated to a person of a different gender. Also in this case, more women answer this question positively – 84%. positive responses, up to 73 percent positive indications among men.

A slightly lower, but still high percentage of positive answers is recorded when asking about the superior’s age. 64 percent respondents declare that it is not a problem for them to be a subordinate to a person much younger than themselves. In this case, the answers are consistent among respondents of both sexes. However, we see a significant difference depending on the age of the respondents. Positive indications increase with age – as much as 76%. people in the 54-65 group confirmed that cooperation with a much younger supervisor was not a problem for them. Lower results in younger groups may be related to concerns about the experience of such a young person or to high ambitions and the need for professional development of people in these age groups.

56 percent respondents indicate that their employer actively ensures that all employees feel good at work. 31 percent respondents confirm that their company has interest groups or initiatives aimed at integrating people of different nationalities, religions or psychosexual orientations.

49 percent respondents perceive companies’ involvement in initiatives promoting openness and tolerance towards representatives of the LGBT+ community as a positive trend. This result varies depending on the gender of the responder. Such activities are positively assessed by 55 percent. women and slightly less, 43 percent men. Comparing this with the previous very positive results regarding cooperation with people of a different psychosexual orientation, nationality or views, it is worth noting that an open attitude towards colleagues does not always go hand in hand with a positive perception of the company’s direct involvement in these issues. Therefore, when organizing campaigns to promote diversity, it is worth considering them carefully to take into account the needs of all groups of employees in the organization.

– More and more organizations are implementing activities to strengthen diversity – this is a clear positive trend. Webinars and other educational activities, CSR campaigns, competitions are just some of the ideas on how to engage employees and work towards building an open and tolerant workplace. Diversity is a delicate topic that requires a lot of empathy, so when organizing such campaigns, you must remember to tailor them to employees. It is worth involving them already at the concept development stage. Let’s ask what they would like to talk about, what issues related to diversity arouse their curiosity or answers to what questions they would like to hear. We will then avoid actions that will not reach our employees, emphasizes Agata Grzejda, internal communication expert at Pracuj.pl.

According to the authors of the study, the results indicate that Polish employees understand that diversity is an opportunity for development and are not afraid of cooperation in diverse teams. However, a good attitude and willingness may sometimes not be enough. That is why it is so important for organizations to support and educate employees on how to work effectively and comfortably in diverse teams. This is even more important because, taking into account the competition for talents, demographic changes and the increasing number of foreigners on the Polish market, our environments will become increasingly diverse, and employers who learn to manage them well will gain a significant advantage.

Source:https://www.prawo.pl/kadry/roznorodnosc-w-miejscu-pracy-badanie- Pracujpl,523821.html

Supported by Norway through Norway Grants 2014-2021, in the frame of the Programme “Social Dialogue – Decent Work”.