I found out very quickly that there were unclear equality policies and many things that should be working more effectively within the organization. I wanted to create an employee network where I could share why LGBT employees are important. TATA is an Indian multinational-being gay was still a criminal offence in India when I joined the company, and the company wasn’t doing enough to take a stand.
In society, that figure is 5-10%, so we are completely underrepresented at exec level. And the more voices we can amplify, the more people start to come forward with their own stories.Ġ.5% of Fortune 500 company directors are LGBT. Violence can happen to anyone, anywhere-your sister, your brother, in the street, on the bus. That’s why I got involved with the anti-violence charity, Galop. I know how important it is to talk about it and get support. Since the Brexit vote, violence against LGBT people increased fivefold in the UK.
Today, there are nearly 1,000 of us in the network. Each of the letters of LGBTQ+ brings its own complexities to the table. When I joined TATA Consulting, they said “Oh, just join the Women’s Network.” But that’s not enough. We all deserve to feel safe, wherever we are.
