WHY DOES BI INCLUSION MATTER?

The case for bi inclusion 

Bi people represent the largest group within the LGBT+ community yet remain underrepresented in the workplace and many do not feel included.

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Bi+ describes those who experience  attraction to more than one gender. The term bi+ serves as an umbrella term for the various identifiers which meet this definition including the common used term pansexual.

According to a 2019 YouGov poll in the UK, one in six of those surveyed aged 18-24 identified as bi, eight times more than in a 2015 survey (1). Of the LGBT+ population, a leading employee survey in 2020 found 57% of LGBT+ Gen-Z (18-24 year olds) and 47% of Millennials (25-34 year olds) identified as bi. This number has grown rapidly in recent years (2).

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However, bi people remain largely underrepresented and invisible in the workplace. Leading LGBT+ charity, Stonewall reported that bi people do not experience belonging in the workplace to the same extent as any other sexual orientation.

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Stonewall also found that bi people are more likely to experience mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression (3). Yet support for bi+ people is often lacking and sometimes entirely absent. D&I policies, networks and ally programs must evolve to effectively represent bi people.

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It is imperative that workplaces be proactively and visibly inclusive of their bi populations to improve their health, wellbeing and sense of belonging. Doing so will unlock transformative business benefits as bi people bring their whole self to work and overcome invisible barriers to realizing their full potential.

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1 YouGov (2019)

2 BCG Employee Survey  (2020)

3 Stonewall LGBT Health in Britain (2018)