Teamsters Local Union No. 155 Survey: Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging

What do we mean when we talk about diversity?

DIVERSITY is a word that describes the composition of the whole workforce. A workplace that values diversity, values every worker for who they are and what they bring to the work.

DIVERSITY doesn’t mean adding a few workers who are different from the rest. It means:

• looking at the different characteristics and experiences of everyone in a workforce (say, in Teamsters Local Union No. 155, or in the BC film industry as a whole).
• expanding on the variety of those differences if possible, especially as the workforce grows.
• getting the employer to value each worker for who they are and for the unique strengths they bring to the work.

INCLUSION means making sure there is room for every kind of person in the workforce, and especially those who have suffered historic discrimination and been shut out of the workforce.

BELONGING means making everyone who joins the workforce feel like they belong. It means adapting to each other. Getting along and trying to appreciate each other. Ideally, treating everyone with warmth and respect. And, especially for trade unionists, it means standing in solidarity with each other.