We believe employee diversity is an asset to our business – men and women of various ages from different backgrounds and cultures with a range of different experiences help us understand and serve our customers around the world.
Our equal opportunities policy states that Vodafone does not condone unfair treatment of any kind and requires employees to act with integrity and respect for their colleagues and customers.
We are building a culture that respects the value of differences among us and encourages individuals to contribute their best within an environment that is inclusive, open, flexible and fair. We will not tolerate discrimination or unfair treatment on any grounds. We are committed to helping talented people from diverse backgrounds meet their potential at all levels of the company.
Cultural diversity
With operations worldwide, Vodafone is not only multinational but multicultural. We encourage our managers to gain experience working in different countries and almost half our senior managers have international experience. International rotation is a key part of our new Inspire programme for employees with high potential. See Learning and development.
Gender diversity
We have a strategy in place to improve gender diversity. This includes carrying out senior leadership training on inclusion and diversity. We intend to develop action plans to build a more inclusive culture over the next three to five years (see target in performance 2007/08).
We also recognise that women can often be more affected by family commitments than men and encourage flexible working to help employees balance their work with their family commitments.
Employees with disabilities
We are conscious of the difficulties experienced by people with disabilities, and make every effort to ensure access to the Group’s facilities and services.
Disabled people are assured of full and fair consideration for all vacancies for which they offer themselves as suitable candidates. We do our best to meet their needs, particularly in relation to access and mobility. Where possible, modifications to workplaces are made to provide access for the disabled.
Every effort is made to continue the employment of people who become disabled during their employment, through the provision of additional facilities, job design and appropriate training.
- See more on our equal opportunities and diversity performance 2007/08.