Diversity Consulting's Diversity Support Line offers a professional and confidential service aimed at helping to create a discrimination-free and inclusive workplace. Once operational, a rapid response to complaints of discrimination, pro-active intervention and professional attention to diversity and discrimination issues will be guaranteed.

Any employee can contact the Diversity Support Line to make suggestions for improving the management of diversity or to lodge a complaint about discrimination, harassment or bullying in the work environment. Any Line or Human Resource Manager can seek advice about the management of diversity issues and actual or potential discrimination issues in the workplace, including those relating to hiring, promotion and dismissal.

The advice will be given by Diversity Support Line's counsellors, who are Human Resource Consultants with expertise in diversity issues in the workplace or Legal experts with considerable experience in human rights, employment, anti-discrimination law and dispute resolution and mediation. Grounds of discrimination which will be dealt with are those recognised by law including discrimination based on sex, marital status, pregnancy, family responsibility, race, disability, age, physical features, and religious or political belief. The Support Line will also address issues of sexual and other forms of harassment and bullying.

The Service Includes:

• Provision of a telephone helpline available 5 days a week (9:00am - 5pm) to receive and address suggestions, questions, complaints and other issues pertaining to diversity in the workplace or matters of alleged discrimination.
• Offering telephone and/or face-to-face advice to employees and the client (employer) regarding the management of diversity or unlawful discrimination.
• Face-to face mediation or conciliation of discrimination disputes on issues between employee and co-employee or between employee and the client (employer)
• Written reports and statistical analyses of discrimination occurrences and diversity issues/ trends within the client's organisation.
• An annual legal briefing session for management and/or Diversity Councils concerning initiatives to make the workplace more inclusive and to reduce discrimination in the client's workplace.

Objectives

• To provide a service that is ongoing and proactive by means of advice given to the client about managing and valuing diversity effectively.
• To offer rapid advice/intervention in actual or potential discrimination issues thereby providing an effective form of risk-management.
• To reach a suitable and satisfactory resolution of grievances and complaints expeditiously, fairly and cheaply.
• To save costs by preventing employees becoming disgruntled/unproductive or even resigning.
• To be a non-adversarial and a neutral party allied to the interests of neither the employer nor the employee with a focus on resolution of grievances and disputes in the interests of an inclusive workplace.

The Diversity Support Line's rapid responses to complaints of discrimination, proactive intervention and independent professional attention to diversity and discrimination issues will lead to improved employee morale and productivity, reduced staff turnover, reduced risk of costly disputes and consequential financial savings, evidence in legal proceedings of positive steps to avoid discrimination, higher levels of employee engagement, and an inclusive environment for your organisation's diverse workforce.