NHS drops Targets on Diversity & Inclusion

To put a stronger emphasis on patient care, the NHS has dropped its diversity and inclusion targets.

The latest NHS ruling highlights that NHS Trusts will not be held responsible for increasing the service’s “disparity ratio” for those who are black, Asian, and other ethnic minorities.

Previously, NHS managers had been told to improve representation by “delivering the six high-impact steps to alter recruiting and promotion policies”.

Whether senior executives in local organisations represent the number of minority ethnic workers is the subject of this question.

Among the steps taken were “owning the agenda” of diversity in hiring, “introducing a system” of “comply or explain” and reworking interview procedures.

As NHS England tries to trim workforce levels, Health Secretary Steve Barclay voiced a wish to eliminate micromanagement in the NHS.

The NHS Race and Health Observatory’s director, Habib Naqvi, said:

“Workforce race equality data tell us how important it is for the NHS to keep steadfast in its pursuit of understanding, and actively improving, the experiences of its diverse workforce.

“The NHS is the largest employer of black, Asian and ethnic minority people in England.

“It is vital therefore that these staffs are provided with equality of opportunity concerning recruitment, career progression and promotion, as afforded to their white colleagues.”

As frontline employees protest for higher wages, health sector executives have come under fire for spending millions of pounds on “woke non-jobs”.

According to sources, hospitals and trusts in England and Wales are offering more than £1 million in “equality, diversity, and inclusion”-related roles, with most of the wages surpassing that of the average nurse.

It happens as the ailing NHS faces walkouts by nurses and paramedics and confronts a waiting list that has reached a record high of 7.2 million people.

For £40,000 a year, one trust is recruiting a “mindfulness lead” who will guide workers in meditation.

Another is seeking a “change agent” for up to £54,000, and a third health board is providing free yoga and pilates classes for its “lived experience training lead.”

Two-thirds of the 20 “equality, diversity, and inclusion” (EDI)-related job ads examined offered earnings above the Royal College of Nursing’s projected average nurse salary of £33,384 per year.

The most pricey job posting paid over three times this amount, or nearly £97,000. It was for an “associate director of equity, diversity, and inclusion”.

This statement was made six months after Sajid Javid complained that there were “too many working in jobs focused entirely on diversity and inclusion” in the healthcare system.

Mr Barclay has requested that the NHS make available online information on the number of employees in each of its departments, particularly those responsible for diversity initiatives.