b'Employers aren\'t alone in their journey. BuildForce Canada, for one, provides a Respectful and Inclusive Workplace Toolkit (buildforce.ca/en/respectful-workplaces) to help employers address diversity and inclusion from a policy perspective. These include self-assessment tools, policy framework guides and an online course on dealing with negative jobsite behaviours and biases.Internally, employers may not even be aware that their workplace culture is being exclusive to certain employees," notes Ferriera. "You can have veterans who aren\'t used to working with women and aren\'t respecting them as they should, a new arrival to Canada that isn\'t being heard or certain demographics being left out of social events.These things can make individuals feel like they don\'t belong, and that undermines an employer\'s recruitmentand retention strategy."IMMEDIATE ACTIONSDespite best efforts, there will be bad experiences. It\'s important to manage these situations as they emerge and use them to reflect on what can be done to avoidrepeat events."You have to deal with incidents of racism and discrimination head-on, but also take time to determine what went wrong, what the root cause is and how the company can address it in a way that makes the team stronger," says Hofford. Every situation is unique, and responses will vary. At the end of the day, however, a truly inclusive workplace thrives on everyone being respected and heard. When you put in the policies and structures to make that voice heard, you get more engagement, better productivity and a stronger culture as a result, says Hofford. That\'s when you become an employer of choice, and when good people start coming to you.BUILDFORCE CANADAS RESPECTFUL WORKPLACE GUIDELINESRecent events in Toronto have demonstrated that no jobsite is immune to bias. Here are several steps to help address racism and discrimination in the workplace:1. Organizations must develop and commit torespect and inclusion as a core value.2. Leaders must be unified and very visible in theircommitment to racial equality.3. Organizations must communicate theircommitment to racial equality widely and through every communication channel.4. The organizations training strategy must usemultiple channels and methods to ensure that racial equality is not a separate, isolated initiative, but is part of the organizations core values as a204-233-8687 respectful and inclusive workplace. 16 SPEERS RD, WPGSidebar courtesy of BuildForce Canadas Respectful Workplaces Blog.STARBUILDING.CARead more at buildforce.ca/en/blog/building-foundation-respect-part-41.Issue 3 Fall Edition 2020 BUILD MANITOBA 35'