Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Update: 

As a part of our continued effort, the EA is providing training and coaching to some of our member organizations, with the intention of doing more. We would like to hear from you, our members, about your specific needs.

The EA wants to continue to be a valuable resource when it comes to the very important workplace conversations around Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. To that end, we are asking you to complete this short survey (please click here) , which will provide us with information that we can use to develop relevant and timely strategies and resources for you and your organization.

June 10, 2020

A message from the Employers’ Association Board of Directors and Senior Leadership:

We Can Do Better!

The recent tragic and disturbing deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery as well as the peaceful protests of many thousands of Americans, have caused many of us to re-examine our thoughts, beliefs and actions in the light of these horrendous acts of injustice. The board members and senior leadership team of the Employers’ Association are wrestling with what actions we can take to not simply condemn the injustices but be part of the change and solutions our country needs. While we do not assume to have the answers right now, we believe there are answers and there must be hope.  We must take the words of the pre-amble to our Constitution to heart, accept the high calling on all of us as Americans and encourage action.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

In this spirit, we as leaders of the EA will start with three ways we can move in a better direction.

1. Humble Ourselves – no one has all the answers and we will embrace the reality that as individuals and, as an organization, we have a lot more to learn about racial injustice and inequality than we know right now.
2. Embrace Open Communication – we will look for ways to have open, honest and often uncomfortable conversations about these same topics and make these same prospects available to members.
3. Create Opportunities – anyone who has ever accomplished anything has done it with the help of friends, family and community. We must and will look for ways to enhance opportunities for others. We will embrace the need to increase our level of involvement as individuals. And we will, as an organization, increase our efforts towards promotion of Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace for our members and the community at large.

In the next several weeks, the EA team will be generating some specific steps we can take to address each of the action steps listed above. We invite you, our members, to join us in this journey by sharing your ideas and resources and feedback on the efforts we take as an organization so that together we can learn, improve and help ourselves and others.