Diversity Assured Recruitment - DAR First nationally supported equality standard for UK professionals

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) leads the way in promoting and elevating standards in the recruitment industry.

Recruitment agencies are encouraged to promote high standards of corporate best practise and individual professional competence. By signing up to the Code of Good Recruitment Practice to ensure job seekers and employers receive the highest recruitment standards.

With the launch of the Diversity Pledge developed by Birmingham Professional Divercity and endorsed by the REC and Job Centre Plus in December 2005, Diversity Assured Recruitment Certification will take recruitment agencies one step further, to differentiate themselves as leaders in diversity and preferential suppliers to industry - this can only be a win win situation.

It really is important to manage and value diversity!

The fact that between 70% - 80% of all vacancies are filled by recruitment agencies, uniquely places recruitment agencies as the conduit between the job seeker and the employer.

How recruiters approach diversity and eliminate discriminatory practices will determine their ability to run a business, to make a profit, attract and retain the best available talent, demonstrate compliance to employers and ensure long term business health.

The business benefits of a diverse workforce:

• Increase and protects sales and the employer and applicant base
• Increases innovation and improved working practices
• Higher profits and business worth
• Lowers the risk of claims for discrimination
• More choice of skilled labour
• Better relations in the workplace
• Satisfies legal obligations and ensures equality of opportunity for all

To achieve the REC Diversity Assured Recruitment Certification, Companies must be assessed and audited

It takes on average 6 weeks per organisation to achieve an acceptable level. During this period we estimate that it takes between 15 and 20 working hours to be ready for the certification process if you choose to be supported in the process. If you decide to work unsupported. The time will of course depend on your existing systems and practices. This excludes any equality training that may be needed.

Points to remember:

• REC Diversity Assured confirms your credentials to employers, candidates and staff.
• Public authorities require businesses to demonstrate good race equality policies in order to secure contracts.
• The average cost of a discrimination case is 10,000 pounds sterling
• The largest award made to date was 1.4million pounds sterling
• The equality payback includes higher profits and future business worth