Creating inclusive workplaces in Singapore: A corporate guide for companies and HR practitioners

• Main Authors: WONG, Benjamin Tien Yong, KASMAN, Muhammad Hafiz, LEE, Tye Wei
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2015
• Subjects: Human resources management; inclusive workplace policies; diversity; Singapore; inclusive HR practices; support networks; Asian Studies; Human Resources Management
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/studentpub/5; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=studentpub
• Institution: Singapore Management University

We are a team of students from the Singapore Management University (SMU). Our team recognises that LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) individuals – as with all employees – are valuable members of many organisations that operate in Singapore. We therefore believe that companies can harness the potential of stronger teams by creating diverse and inclusive workplaces for its LGBT and LGBT-affirming members. While we acknowledge that diversity and inclusion ought to proactively encompass a spectrum of strands such as gender, race and socio-economic backgrounds, management literature concerning LGBT issues in Singapore remain relatively unchartered – a gap that this publication seeks to fill. As part of the SMU’s Diversity Leadership Development Programme, we created this booklet for Human Resource practitioners and companies operating in Singapore to shed light on some of the issues faced by LGBT individuals in the workplace. In addition, we explore opportunities for corporations to create a work environment where LGBT individuals can feel safe, included and valued as contributing members of their organisations. Through this project, we reviewed academic literature and popular press, worked with various entities, and interviewed 22 individuals from diverse backgrounds and specialisations to develop content that Human Resources (HR) practitioners and organisations operating in Singapore might find useful in building inclusive workplaces. These individuals stepped forward after an open appeal for interviewees through professional and community networks. Anecdotes from their interviews are included throughout this booklet so that readers can appreciate – in their own words – their experiences, challenges and hopes. In order to protect our participants’ privacy and the integrity of their contributions, pseudonyms have been used have also been included to give readers additional context of the opinions shared.