3 Dec 2021
“Organisations like to claim they have a ‘commitment to diversity and inclusion’, but we see no evidence that they are changing their organisational structures and processes…” – Issa Robson.
Joshua Silverwood
Job Title
Image © Jakub Krechowicz / Adobe Stock
Statistics from the BVA’s Spring 2021 Voice of the Veterinary Profession survey show that one in six vets and vet students have experienced or witnessed discrimination in the past year.
The survey by the BVA – released ahead of its Big Conversation on Equality and Inclusion in the Veterinary Professions webinar, held on 2 December – also shows the level of concern about discrimination in the industry have not changed significantly in two years .
The spring 2021 survey found 53% of vets were concerned specifically about discrimination; this was 56% in the 2019 report.
In response to the figures contained in the survey, British Veterinary Ethnicity and DIversity Society (BVEDS) spokesman Issa Robson said the results of the survey were “not shocking” before calling for more accountability across the profession on the issue of discrimination.
Dr Robson said: “While the figures may be shocking to some it is not shocking to many in marginalised communities.
“Given how few black, Asian and minority ethnic folks there are in the profession, for racial discrimination to be the second most reported discrimination after gender is very telling. Combine this with a profession where 47% of those surveyed are not concerned about discrimination.”
Dr Robson added: “While we like to focus on individuals and individual acts of discrimination, we must actually focus on the workplace cultures, training, reporting and organisation accountability.
“Organisations like to claim they have a ‘commitment to diversity and inclusion’, but we see no evidence that they are changing their organisational structures and processes to deal with discrimination appropriately.
“These claims are lip service, used to appease the majority groups.
“Those of us on the ground doing the support in marginalised communities are challenging any organisation to audit what they have actually done and invested in the past year to evidence that commitment to diversity and inclusion.”
The spring 2021 survey found 15% of vets and vet students have personally experienced discrimination within a veterinary workplace or learning environment in the past 12 months, while 21% have been witness to such discrimination.
The figures will be fed into the good workplace working group that produced the Good Veterinary Workplaces Voluntary Code.
Dr Robson added: “We have a significant way to go to bridge the actual experiences of those being discriminated against and the profession’s desire to tackle discrimination effectively.
“We understand organisations might not know what to do, that’s why they should invest in professional advice and not leave it to their marginalised staff to do the heavy lifting.
“Ultimately, when organisations create environments that are inclusive everyone thrives. Witnessing discrimination in a workplace that is tolerated, even when you are not the target, is damaging.”
The latest BVA statistics also showed senior colleagues were most commonly responsible for incidents of discrimination, with 48% of the reported incidents, while discrimination from clients accounted for 35% of incidents.
Additionally, sex discrimination remains the most common type reported, with 40% of incidents, followed by race discrimination, which accounted for 30% of incidents.
Almost a quarter of incidents (23%) related to age, while 19% of the incidents were classified as discrimination around pregnancy or parental leave.
BVA junior vice-president Malcolm Morley said: “Once again these results paint a disturbing picture of the scale of discrimination among veterinary professionals. It is clear from our report that we must all do more to eradicate discrimination from our workplaces.”
He added: “It is deeply disappointing to see that there has been no improvement over the past two years and clearly unacceptable that so many members of the veterinary team continue to experience discrimination, particularly from members of our own profession.
“These conversations may be uncomfortable for the profession, but we cannot shy away from them. Whether we have personally experienced or witnessed discrimination or not, we all have a duty to ensure the veterinary team is a safe and supportive environment for everyone.
“The BVA will continue to play our part in the Big Conversation, and I encourage every veterinary professional to reflect on what role they can play to improve equality and inclusion for the whole team.”
The latest discrimination report from the BVA was highlighted at the webinar on 2 December and is available at bit.ly/32GO403
