Social Cohesion & Inclusion Sub-group Proposal, May 2018 Chaired by

The First Principles agreed by the CEO Leader Group are: Move Beyond Best Practice, Create Transformational Change Business leadership Ambitious and bold Collective challenges and gain Collaborative action Innovation These Principles form the evaluation criteria for assessing potential proposals.

The role of this group – draft narrative: The social cohesion sub-group is concerned with addressing the growing inequality in Irish society. The Council of Europe defines social cohesion as the capacity of a society to ensure the welfare of all its members, minimising disparities and avoiding polarisation. A major and systemic element of social exclusion is economic. Employers have a role in supporting individuals and groups in society which are at particular risk of becoming vulnerable to social exclusion We recognise our responsibility to invest in society, supporting individuals to pursue their personal development throughout their life; and enabling each person to participate actively as a full member of society. Jobs can create economic and social ties, increasing trust and community participation, providing social identity and connecting people. Our approach reflects a belief that a good working society is beneficial both for social cohesion and for business, allowing employers to uncover and nurture talent in all areas and supporting Ireland as an open, inclusive and attractive economic environment Through the Leader group we will seek to make employability equal for all, creating and facilitating programs across the lifecycle of individuals affected by social inequality, and providing the leadership required to encourage other companies We also seek to look inwards to examine how business can challenge rather than support structural inequalities, considering how businesses can organize to be more inclusive. Our work in the group is focused on three areas: education, employability and internal processes.

Business Case Our approach reflects a belief that a good working society is beneficial both for social cohesion and for business, allowing employers to uncover and nurture talent in all areas and supporting Ireland as an open, inclusive and attractive economic environment. Research shows that diverse teams out perform non—diverse teams.

Call to Action Leaders commit to at least one new thing Intervention @ School Stage Internal Focus: Recruitment – increased engagement with socially disadvantaged Enter/Re-enter Work Phase Primary Level Scaffolding of supports for new entrants or returning entrants to the workforce Teacher Training – 2-3 week work placement (DEIS) Unconscious bias (HR processes end to end e.g. Textio software) Guiding principles Culture Change Evaluation Recommend delivery timeline, one new action every 6 months Transition Year and/or paid summer work placements for 6th year students from disadvantaged schools (DEIS) e.g. SSE Works - integrated work placements Diversity audit inc. measurement, Equality proofing, Longer term – Apprenticeships Equality and Diversity Training Internships from disadvantaged communities B2B Learning platforms

Definitions A diversity audit aims to identify barriers to full workforce participation that exist within the workplace for certain groups of individuals and to identify ways of overcoming them. It is conducted across six organisation levels: Leadership and governance Strong and transparent human resources practices Quality of life and organizational culture Measuring and tracking diversity Integrating or mainstreaming diversity across the value chain Developing the pipeline: developing a future workforce that is diverse and inclusive   Equality proofing – implementing a mechanism or a tool e.g. a checklist to ensure that policies and practices are free from discrimination against marginalised groups Unconscious bias – the unconscious association of traits with members of a demographic group, which can influence decision-making in organisations

Existing Business Interventions Proposed business interventions Social cohesion – business intervention framework Life Stages Education & Employment Existing Business Interventions Proposed business interventions Age 3 – Enter Playgroup Early Learning Initiative (NCI in D1)   Age 5 – Age 12 Primary School Time 2 Read Time 2 Count Junior Achievement Suas Teacher Training Age 13 – 15 Junior Cycle Age 16 – 18 Senior Cycle Skills at Work - DEIS Mentoring - DEIS Management Excellence for Teachers Management Excellence for Principals STEM/STEAM Young Social Innovators BT Young Scientists DEIS : Work placement pledge DEIS: Transition Year (TY) placements Longer-term apprenticeship Age 19+ Further Education/Employability (transitioning from education into the world of work - can happen any time from 16 e.g. junior cert, transition year, leaving cert, leaving college and beyond.) Ready for Work EPIC Access Programme supports Job Care (local initiatives) Intreo Career Leap (pilot)  Unconscious bias Diversity audit/equality proofing Equality and diversity training Longer term apprenticeships Scaffolding for new entrants