BUILDING A CULTURE OF FAIRNESS: TURNING INTENTIONS INTO ACTION

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Fairness is a term that gets thrown around a lot, and many organizations are striving to ramp up their fairness… but what does that even mean? In order to start building cultures of fairness, we have to start with a comprehensive understanding of what we are aiming for.

Merriam Webster defines “Fair” as “marked by impartiality and honesty: free from self-interest, prejudice, or favoritism.” Collins dictionary says, “something or someone that is fair is reasonable, right, and just.”

Most people would probably offer similar definitions. “Fair” is a concept that humans take on early, possibly as young as 4 months. We know when the scales are tipped and somebody is missing out, while another is benefiting from their disadvantage. A lot of us feel uncomfortable when something is unfair, and if organizations cultivate unfair atmospheres, it can have a massively negative impact on morale. But what might unfair look like at work?

It could appear in a lot of different ways. One of the most obvious lies in pay scales. If, for instance, men and women are getting paid different amounts for the same job, as is sadly still very common, we’ve got obvious unfairness; the same is true for racial disparities. However, unfairness can appear in many more subtle ways too. It might mean that the person who is friends with the manager gets a promotion somebody else deserved more, or that disabled individuals are permitted disproportionately more flexibility than able-bodied people, or that somebody gets unjust accommodations because they are religious and the company is worried about lawsuits.

Unfairness can therefore rear its head in a wide range of ways. The impact it has is almost always the same, though: it creates demoralization and a lack of employee loyalty within the company. It can even be detrimental to those who are being favored, because working in an unfair environment often causes a sense of instability and uncertainty. Individuals recognize that when treatment isn’t fair, it’s generally just luck that is keeping them safe, and that could change at any time.

For this reason, organizations need to work hard on cultivating a culture of fairness so that employees feel safe. While it may be hard to be totally fair at all times, showing that the organization is dedicated to this and doing what it can to treat employees equitably can make a huge difference to morale. So, what should be done?

Be transparent about promotion criteria

Often, promotions are a source of friction in the workplace. If employees apply for promotions and don’t get them, it can lead to them feeling that they have been treated unfairly.

For this reason, organizations should strive to create very clear criteria around promotions. What specific qualities are required? How much experience must the employee have?

Employees should have a strong sense of whether they are an eligible candidate for a promotion and how much chance they have of being hired. They should know before investing time and emotional energy into the process. If organizations don’t offer clarity around this process, they’ll often find themselves accused of unfairness, possibly even in instances when it isn’t true!

Have consequences for problematic behavior

Some organizations think that being fair means they must always give employees “another chance” and that they can’t deal with bad behavior in effective ways. This is actually a very sure way to introduce unfairness into the situation. If employees who come in late and don’t do their work are allowed to get away with it, employees who do their jobs conscientiously are placed in an unfair position. They may become demotivated and start slacking as a result, or just look for work elsewhere.

Consequences for employees who aren’t meeting certain clearly-conveyed bars are a must to keep organizations fair. Employers should also make sure that these are directed at the problem employees, rather than imposing consequences for one person’s bad behavior on everyone. If, for example, one employee is chronically late, this shouldn’t mean the organization cracks down on arrival times and starts disciplining everyone who is a minute late. They should address it with the problem employee and encourage them to adhere to the same standards as everybody else.

Encourage open-door policies

In organizations where managers are open to hearing concerns, unfairness is far less likely to appear. It should be possible for employees to give feedback through multiple channels, both anonymously and in-person. It will be much easier for the organization to identify and rectify issues if employees feel comfortable reporting them. In turn, employees are far more likely to report problems if they feel it’s likely to make a difference!

Review your current setups

In many cases, traditions get a pass when organizations start trying to make themselves fairer, because “we’ve always done it that way.” Change can be hard and sometimes causes unhappiness, but old systems are quite likely to contain bias and may need to be removed to create a genuinely fair environment.

Say, for example, that your workplace has an annual trip to a seafood restaurant that everyone loves… until a Hindu who doesn’t eat fish joins the workplace. They can’t eat the food at this restaurant, and suddenly the trip is not inclusive. Some people argue that the Hindu can bring their own food and just join in with the conversation, while others suggest they skip the meal entirely or eat beforehand. A third group says they should just find something on the menu that works for them.

None of these suggestions are really satisfactory. They put an unfair burden on the religious individual, single them out, and exclude them, even if half-hearted attempts are made to be inclusive. Instead, the organization should choose a restaurant that caters to a wider demographic, or organize takeout meals from multiple restaurants so everybody can choose what they want. It’s important for them to make sure the religious employee doesn’t get blamed for the change either, which can be tricky to navigate, but is essential.

Many organizations will try to avoid this “drastic” solution and opt to keep the original trip in place with some slight modification because this seems easier… but it’s not fair. Everybody should be able to enjoy the food in the restaurant and failing to prioritize this is a failure to establish a fair culture.

To make truly fair workplaces,  we have to be bold about facing and eliminating bias, and introduce new approaches that are genuinely fair, whether that’s in pay and benefits, promotions, which days are considered vacation days, or other areas.

Time to get hands-on!

Let’s take a minute to review a real fairness case and reflect on how inconsistent policies impact employees and organizations. In one instance, an employee was unfairly dismissed due to unclear and inconsistently applied company policies on allowances. The Fair Work Commission ruled the dismissal invalid, awarding the employee $40,528.09 in compensation. This case highlights the importance of clear, transparent, and consistently enforced policies to ensure fairness in workplaces. Take a moment to reflect—are policies in your organization easily accessible and applied equally? Could certain areas, such as promotions or disciplinary actions, benefit from greater consistency?