Far from being a casualty of ‘woke’ culture wars, inclusive hiring practices are in fact more popular than ever with employers, research has suggested.
The latest annual employer survey of 233 employers by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) has found pro-EDI hiring practices are at their highest level since it began collecting data in 2022.
This, the REC argued, showed “employers are shifting from signalling about EDI to making it a foundation of their recruitment practices and setting out what they do”.
Drilling down into the findings, more than half of respondents (51%) said they were now using diverse interview panels, up from the 34.9% reported in 2024. More than a third (33.5%) were using name-blind CV submissions, compared with just over a fifth (21.5%) who said this last year.
More than half (51.9%) used wording specifically designed to be inclusive in job adverts. This was up slightly on the 51.5% reported in the 2024 survey. Intriguingly, this was also the one area where usage remains below the 2022 level (57.1%), the REC said.
Nearly half of respondents (47.9%) explicitly stated an interest in diverse candidates, compared with 39.5% in 2024. About a third (30.3%) offered training and learning resources on best EDI practices, slightly ahead of the 29% reported in 2024.
Much the same percentage (29%) said they had stronger internal policies and commitment from senior leaders on EDI, up from 26% in 2024.
A total of 26.6% had access to technologies that support EDI, for example, software for anonymised CV screening. This was quite significantly up on the 14% reported in 2024, said the REC.
More than a quarter (25.8%) agreed their organisation held events and networking with other organisations on EDI initiatives, against 20% last year.
The use of external incentives or recognition programmes, for example awards or certifications, had also accelerated, up to 23.5% from just 9% last year. A fifth (20.4%) used case studies or success stories from similar organisations, doubling on the 10% reported last year.
A similar percentage (19.6%) said they bought in support and advice from external EDI experts, slightly up on the 17% last year. Finally, 15.9% answered said they felt they achieved “demonstrable business benefits” and ROI from EDI practices, up from 7% last year.
REC chief executive Neil Carberry said: “Our findings show that the inclusion agenda is far stronger than the unhelpful and incorrect framing of it by some as ‘woke’ would suggest.
“This poll suggests that businesses see inclusion as key to accessing and retaining the teams they need. In a shrinking domestic labour force – and with tackling inactivity at the heart of the economic agenda – we should applaud business for taking a lead.
“This is about businesses doing what is best for them – tackling talent shortages and opening up opportunities. With robust legal protections in place to prevent anyone getting ahead just because of demographics, we should welcome this outreach as good for business and good for growth,” Carberry added.
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