LGBTI staff, and diversity within the Australian accounting profession

Abstract

Purpose Large accounting firms lay claim today to a broad focus on staff diversity and inclusion. Related initiatives focus on gender, culture, age and sexuality. This paper aims to seek insight from publicly available discourse provided by the “Big 4” in Australia (Deloitte, Ernst and Young, KPMG and PwC), along with two second-tier firms, into the nature and drivers of diversity initiatives for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) staff. Design/methodology/approach Web-based discourse provided as at May 2017 is examined and analysed. Findings All six firms provided a range of related disclosures, suggesting that a cultural shift for LGBTI staff was underway. Detail provided on actual policies and procedures was limited, and a struggle was suggested, between balancing the needs of diverse staff, with concerns for some, perhaps, more conservative clients. Some repositioning of arguments was suggested, focussed on shifting responsibility to staff and on shifting the object of celebration from staff to the firm. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to an interpretation of carefully constructed publicly disclosed statements. Further studies could explore the lived experience of these apparent changes with staff. Practical implications Recruitment and staff retention continue to be on-going challenges within the accounting profession. This study provides insight into initiatives targeted to support LGBTI staff. Social implications Availing space to bring ‘whole selves’ into the workplace is an important element of creating a pleasant, comfortable and engaging environment for staff. This study provides insight into the perspective of employers on the importance of such initiatives. Originality/value Little attention has been directed to exploring sexual diversity in the workplace or to sexuality within accounting studies.

An Exploration of Queer Spaces and Worldviews in the Accounting Profession.

“…We thus collected a large bank of data to the extent additional data collection would have provided limited additional significant insights. Our data are particularly rich relative to empirical past studies in this field that were based on less than 20 interviews or web-based discourses (Egan, 2018;Stenger & Roulet, 2018) and consistent with the median number of interviews in leading accounting qualitative research (Dai, Free, & Gendron, 2019).…”

“…More recently, accounting firms appear to have started changing their narratives around LGBTQI staff and diversity through their external representation. Egan (2018) provides evidence that the online discourses in May 2017 of the Big 4 (Deloitte, Ernst and Young, KPMG and PwC) and two second-tier firms (BDO and Grant Thornton) refer to diversity initiatives for LGBTQI staff. He highlights that the firms' repositioning reflects a balance of needs between more conservative clients and LGBTQI staff needs.…”

“…The need for accounting to provide a traditional image of itself compared badly with sexualities other than heterosexuality. The accounting professional literature focuses on the pressure on LGBTQI accountants to conceal their sexuality, generating situations of unrest and limited integration (Rumens, 2016;Stenger & Roulet, 2018) or the need for human resource policies of inclusion from a heteronormative perspective (Egan, 2018). Burrell (1987) argues that the accounting profession even uses sexuality as a source of domination.…”

Celebrating advances in LGBT+ diversity in the accountancy profession

“…Overall, therefore, I believe the Australian LGBT+ discourses examined by Egan (2018) justifiably point to the positive and constructive conclusions drawn by Egan (2018) LGBT+ diversity in other organizations and countries.…”

“…LGBT people around the world are subject to physical and sexual violence by both state and non-state actors • They are discriminated against in education, health and social care and employment • Many LGBT people are rejected by family and from other forms of social assistance • Over a quarter of the world's population (29%) believes that people in same-sex relationships should be charged as criminals • A quarter of the world's population believes that trans people should not be granted full legal recognition of their gender identity" (Stonewall, 2017) In this context of states and communities that are violently hostile to LGBT+ people, large multinational organizations with an extensive global presence, such as the Big 4 and the two large second-tier accountancy / professional services firms studied by Egan (2018), have the potential to be positive change agents in helping transform societal attitudes towards LGBT (and other forms of) diversity in these less enlightened societies and sectors. Indeed, part of Stonewall's international campaigning on LGBT+ rights seeks to use multinational employers as catalysts for change:…”