Bank of Ireland’s Valuable 500 Commitment:
Inclusion and Diversity (l&D) is at the heart of who we are in Bank of Ireland (Bol). Our ambition is to build an organisation, representative of the society the Bank serves, that is welcoming to all (diverse workforce) and provides a safe and fair place to work (inclusive experience). Our approach has been to create a culture of inclusivity, where everyone has a role to play. To support this, we have a dedicated l&D team and colleague-led employee resources networks, supported by our Board and Executive team. Our l&D forum anchors our strategy through which the colleague voice is heard. Our Inclusion & Diversity strategy is designed to increase workforce diversity, foster an inclusive employee experience, embed financial wellbeing and accessibility, and strengthen accountability in l&D. We are focused on implementing real change for disability and accessibility inclusion, enabling our customers, colleagues and communities to thrive. This is demonstrated by;
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Ongoing partnership with Business Disability Forum; Bank of Ireland is the first Irish company to achieve the ‘Disability Smart Standard’, recognising the Bank’s commitment to disability inclusion. ‘Bronze’ status was achieved in the Bank’s first evaluation under the Disability Smart Audit framework.
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Our partnerships with Investors in Diversity (Bronze Accreditation), AHEAD, Trinity Centre for People with Intellectual Disabilities and Open Doors Initiative to promote the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workplace.
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The introduction of our Reasonable Accommodations Passport and Guide to provide colleagues and managers with a clear understanding of the accommodations that can be made to remove or reduce any barriers that colleagues may face.
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Suitability of all Bank of Ireland products or any changes to products are reviewed by our Vulnerable Customer Team from the perspective of vulnerable customers and customers with disabilities.
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Improved branch accessibility for hearing impaired customers, with colleague training to ensure the appropriate assistance for these customers in the• branch. :
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The launch of JAM (Just a Minute) Card branches across a number of jurisdictions to assist customers with learning difficulties and communication barriers.
We are proud to be a member of Valuable 500 as we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone can achieve their full potential. We will continue to do this by;
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Establishing a baseline to understand representation of people with disability across Bank of Ireland.
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Measuring and monitoring employee engagement scores for colleagues with accessibility needs.
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Embedding recommendations from the Business Disability Forum as a ‘disability-smart’ organisation and improving our accreditation from Bronze to Silver;
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Achieving silver accreditation with the external benchmark body ‘Investors in Diversity’ through implementation of our l&D strategic programme.
