LGBTQ+ talents in Singapore: Importance for organisations to be seen as ‘equal opportunity employer’ on the rise

Two in three (64.4%) of the 200 HR professionals and business leaders polled are open to recruiting and hiring diverse candidates, including LGBTQ+ individuals.

In the recently-concluded ‘Singapore LGBTQ+ Workforce Audit 2022’, it was discovered that discriminatory perceptions in Singapore towards LGBTQ+ talents have, in general, improved between 2018 and 2022. This is because a noticeably smaller percentage of respondents selected negative responses to the questions.

Here are some of the key findings from the poll of close to 200 HR professionals and business leaders based in Singapore during the period Nov-Dec 2022, as conducted by ACHIEVE Group.

Importance of ‘equal opportunity employer’ branding

With all companies being asked how important it is for their organisation to be regarded as an ‘equal opportunity employer’, 64.4% stated it was ‘very important’, 25.3% said it was ‘fairly important’, 6.3% felt it was ‘not important at all’, and 4% were ‘neutral’. When comparing the results of the 2022 and 2018 studies, vast improvement was seen in 2022, with 7.4% more respondents stating it was ‘Very important’ to be regarded as an ‘equal opportunity employer’, while fewer respondents felt it was ‘not important at all’ or were ‘neutral’.

Job market perceptions and intentions

On whether companies were open to recruiting and hiring diverse candidates, including LGBTQ+ individuals, close to two in three (64.4%) responded ‘yes’, 7.4% said ‘no’, while about a third of the respondents remained ‘neutral’.

In building upon these intentions to hire, companies were also asked whether prospective joiners and talents in the job market knew about their recruitment policy. About one-third (32.2%) responded ‘yes’, one in five (20.7%) said ‘no’, while the majority, comprising 47.1%, were ‘not sure’ if this was being actively conveyed.

On the disconnect between the high number of companies wanting to be perceived as an 'equal opportunity employer', and the few that have made their recruitment policy known in the market, the report analysed: "This seems to indicate that employers have not been active in promoting their equal employment opportunities to their targeted candidates. It could also be a sign that employers have not fully embraced a recruitment and hiring policy which is open to diverse individuals that includes LGBTQ+ candidates."

Impact on team cohesion of openness and acceptance

Does the sexual orientation of employees have a perceived impact on their authenticity, acceptance by colleagues as well as on team spirit? Two in five (41.4%) of those surveyed responded ‘yes’, that they would perceive employees who have identified as LGBTQ+ to be more authentic, 19.5% said ‘no’, while a large number (39.1%) held a neutral viewpoint on this topic.

When comparing the results with the 2018 study, the 2022 study showed there is a significantly smaller percentage of respondents that indicated ‘No’, while the percentage for ‘Neutral’ increased significantly. 

As for acceptance amongst colleagues, 14.4% of those surveyed responded ‘yes’ to the question that their staff would have issues accepting and working with colleagues who have identified as LGBTQ+; a majority (50%) said ‘no’, and one in three (35.6%) said they were ‘not sure’.

This question was also included in the 2018 study, whereby percentage that responded ‘yes’ decreased from 21% to 14.4%. The percentage of ‘not sure’ increased from 5% to 35.6%, a significant jump.

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