Fighting for equality…
LGBTQ+ solicitors and legal professionals joined together throughout June to celebrate Pride 2023. We spoke to members who attended the London Pride…
To achieve the full value of diversity, workplaces must be inclusive; enabling people to be themselves, share ideas and contribute diverse perspectives.
The survey revealed that a majority of LGBT+ respondents (97%) felt able to be themselves at work – either sometimes (44%) or always (53%).
LGBT+ legal professionals were also more likely to report positive rather than negative experiences in their workplaces – positive experiences commonly related to the availability of formal and informal networks, whilst negative experiences were associated with a lack of visible LGBT+ role models.
In the survey, 82% of LGBT+ legal professionals indicated they were out to colleagues, and 38% were out to clients. This is an increase on 2009 survey findings where 63% of respondents were out to colleagues and 24% were also out to clients.
The 2021 survey revealed that:
Several senior respondents reflected on their feelings of responsibility as someone in a senior role, to be a positive force for change – this is welcome given the wider survey findings about a need for visible role models.
The majority (91%) of LGBT+ respondents reported having colleagues who were not LGBT+ themselves, but who were supportive and active allies for LGBT+ equality in the workplace. 47% said they had “a lot” of allies and 44% said they had “a few”.
Two-thirds of respondents were members of at least one LGBT+ workplace or professional network. A lack of awareness was the most commonly cited reason for not being a member of a network (32%).
Pride in the law: results of the 2021 LGBT+ solicitors’ survey (PDF 911 KB)