The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) has launched a new ad campaign to encourage employers to remedy toxic workplaces, break down biases, and remove barriers that cause tension and discrimination.
The commercial is SHRM’s latest effort to encourage employers to consider hiring veterans, older workers, people with criminal backgrounds and people with disabilities, who are often overlooked as potential employees.
Johnny C. Taylor, Jr., SHRM-SCP, SHRM president and CEO, narrates the “When Work Works Against You” series of ads, which stress the importance of creating welcoming cultures where employees can thrive while helping employers address the skills gap.
Workplace Limits
The commercials show people of different backgrounds working in an office. The ceiling gets progressively lower to illustrate the limited opportunities these individuals face. The spot debuted Jan. 13 on major networks, including CNBC, CNN, ESPN, Fox Business, Fox News and MSNBC.
“This ad represents the importance of inclusion in the workplace, and it is a challenge to workplace leaders to think differently about hiring and empowering employees,” said Jeaneen Andrews-Feldman, chief marketing and experience officer at SHRM.
“We will continue elevating the HR profession and pushing the envelope in our ad campaigns in a bold new way because our workplaces need it and our members are best positioned to make workplaces better while improving lives.”
About SHRM
SHRM and the SHRM Foundation have created tools and resources to help employers hire veterans, older workers, people with disabilities and people who were formerly incarcerated. The Foundation offers a Veterans at Work Certificate Program that focuses on best practices to attract, hire and retain these individuals. It also will launch a free Employing Abilities @Work Certificate in early 2020 on best practices in implementing disability inclusion.