We see the pain of Black communities in the USA, our own communities and across the globe in the wake of the killing of George Floyd at the hands of the police, and recognise the profound impact that this racially motivated violence has on our Black colleagues and their families.
The killing of George Floyd and of too many other Black people in the USA, UK and globally is part of a reality of racial injustice that our Black colleagues, clients, friends and families have to navigate every day.
We also recognise that words of support must be accompanied by concrete and meaningful action. The Ogier leadership in particular acknowledges the privilege we hold and the obligation we have to use that privilege to improve diversity and inclusion at Ogier, particularly at the senior level.
We are committed to doing the work to ensure that the underrepresentation of Black people and other people of colour in our partnership and at other levels of the business is addressed.
We are engaging the global Ogier workforce in our Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) initiative, and will continue with our efforts, from the top of the firm down, to ensure the Ogier workforce better reflects the communities we are part of.
Actions we are taking include:
- Having a specific D&I focus for all our new starters as part of their onboarding with us
- A D&I education programme roll-out across all levels within the firm, building on sessions already held with our partners
- Creating internal networking groups, linking into our clients to share experiences, support and learning
There will be further steps we take as a firm in this area. We are clear that tackling racial injustice is an ongoing process and commit to it for the long-term.
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