Why we must remember to celebrate success on IDAHOBIT

By Maurice Rose, Co-Chair of Link: the LGBTQ+ Insurance Network, and Senior Manager, Enterprise Risk Management, MS Amlin

The very existence of the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) is a useful reminder to us to consider where we’ve come from and where we need to go from an LGBTQ+ inclusion perspective. With the best will in the world, unless it was in the calendar, people within and outside of the LGBTQ+ community might never have it front of mind.

Clearly, there is more work to do. In the UK we’re seeing some back tracking on the progress made on LGBTQ+ inclusion to date. At the same time, we cannot forget the existence of legislation in multiple overseas jurisdictions that actively penalises LGBTQ+ individuals.

It’s important as an international community that we come together and recognise we don’t all have the same privileges and rights in all parts of the globe. We must support our communities wherever they are. This is part of the reason why, although most of our Link chapters do operate in areas with strong LGBTQ+ rights, we have spread our wings outside of London and established chapters in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Bermuda, Canada, Scotland, and the North of England.

A call to action and a day of reflection

IDAHOBIT also gives us as a community the opportunity to reflect on what we still need to do from the perspective of intersectionality. When we consider the L, the G, the B, the T, the Q, and everything else within the LGBTQ+ spectrum, not everyone enjoys the same level of privilege, and we need to recognise that. IDAHOBIT reminds us in the community – and our allies – to make sure we’re all aligned in working towards greater inclusion.

We all need to do more to focus on the intersectional elements of inclusion and recognise that it’s not just about LGBTQ+. This is just one aspect of a multifaceted issue for many people within the insurance industry.

At Link, we focus on education, awareness and making sure we’re covering all aspects of the LGBTQ+ spectrum in our work within and around the insurance industry. This year we’re focusing on the intersection of female empowerment and the LGBTQ+ community, making sure we give enough of a voice to women within the LGBTQ+ community. This is why we’ve been keen to celebrate International Women’s Day and Lesbian Visibility Week with various events and thought leadership articles.

Other practical ways we’re focusing on intersectionality this year will include working with other networks, other minority groups, other communities, to support them so that they follow or support the LGBTQ+ community as well. While there are a number of differences, there are also many similarities within and between minority groups. We all benefit from greater collaboration.

Celebrating success

Ultimately, while there’re always more than can be done from an LGBTQ+ inclusion perspective, the insurance industry is doing incredibly well to keep moving forward. We don’t talk enough about the positives and the progress we’ve made. I think many across the community find the workplace a safe space that often provides insulation from what’s happening in the wider world.

From the work we do at Link and the relationships we’ve built across the industry, it’s clear many firms have considered their LGBTQ+ inclusion agenda robustly over the last three to five years and have made significant progress against that. If you look at the support firms provide to LGBTQ+ individuals, the feedback is often hugely positive.

“We in the insurance industry don’t do enough to promote ourselves as inclusive, much less the wide variety of interesting and rewarding jobs, roles, and opportunities on offer.”

It’s true that there will always be pockets within certain firms that aren’t as inclusive, but this is more a reflection of society at large rather than insurance per se. Let us therefore take the time to celebrate and recognise that insurance is an inclusive place to work and the huge benefits the industry offers for the community and broader society.

We in the insurance industry don’t do enough to promote ourselves as inclusive, much less the wide variety of interesting and rewarding jobs, roles, and opportunities on offer. The work-life balance, rewards, and recognition on offer within insurance compares really favourably with other areas of financial services. The more we shout about that, the easier we will find it to attract talent to the industry.

Link’s mission

Recognising and promoting insurance as an employer of choice is really our mission: to make the insurance industry the employer of choice for the LGBTQ+ community.

At Link, we promote this through working with other organisations such as the London Market Group, who we help with their university outreach. We’ve also collaborated in the past with the Interbank LGBT Forum, and we’ll be doing more collaborations this year, as well as thinking how we can spread the word more broadly across all aspects of society to promote insurance as a career.

“Link aims to be the voice for the LGBTQ+ community within insurance while also promoting insurance to the LGBTQ+ community.”

You could say Link aims to be the voice for the LGBTQ+ community within insurance while also promoting insurance to the LGBTQ+ community. We make sure we cover all aspects of the LGBTQ+ spectrum and, as well as education and awareness, we also work to create a community where people come together and feel safe and connected.

How you can get involved with Link

We have a lot planned for the rest of this year, from more mentoring and career development workshops to monthly First Tuesday drinks where people can come and hang out and network. We’ll be actively supporting and participating in the annual Dive In festival in September.

Of course, it almost goes without saying that we’re planning something exciting and fun for Pride, alongside taking part in London Pride, various regional Prides, and hosting a Pride party. Not to mention our annual summer party which is beginning to get quite the reputation as a major attraction in the insurance industry’s social calendar.

If you’re a member of Link already, please check out the events page on the website or follow our LinkedIn page for updates. You can also follow the specific LinkedIn pages for Link Bermuda, Link Canada, and Link US.