Entries with tag racism .

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Blair McPherson
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28 Nov 2023 - 14:20

null Can you trust an organisation that doesn’t trust itself with the truth? 

In the public sector vacant posts are not just a result of poor pay and overwork but of poor treatment of staff due to institutional apathy towards staff subject to bullying, racism and misogyny. And a perceived lack of support from HR. Recent reports about the NHS, the London Met police force and the London Fire and Rescue service have highlighted a disturbing and persistent culture of... See more
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Blair McPherson
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15 Dec 2022 - 12:15

null No smoke without fire

A few years ago I read an article in the professional press which gave an account of a training programme in support of recruiting more women into the fire and rescue service , not as office staff but as firefighters. The article spoke  of the commitment of senior managers to change the culture within the service. It recognised the historic machoism and the need to challenge sexist... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
01 Dec 2022 - 14:16

null To those who are not racist

Racist behaviour is not limited to those who judge people by the colour of their skin, who think ethnic minorities are inferior or who preach hate. The majority of racist behaviour is committed by ordinary people who are simply insensitive ,unaware and ignorant. Ignorant of other peoples culture and or religion their knowledge limited to lazy stereotypes and myths leading to a lack of awareness... See more
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Blair McPherson
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21 May 2021 - 15:27

null Funny names list

It started harmlessly enough just a casual observation to a colleague about some clients names that got turned into a list, circulated and added to. The list was titled Funny Names. As the Funny Names list became more widely circulated there were growing concerns from some employees that the names were predominantly of Asian and non Anglo Saxon origin. This sparked a  fierce internal... See more
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Blair McPherson
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13 May 2021 - 15:41

null Unconscious Bias the Baby and the Bath Water 

I met up with a former colleague  last week who keeps in touch with  their ex team members on social media and was beginning to regret it. A picture of a child’s soft doll  with bright clothes, a black face and fuzzy hair was being shared with the words , “Let’s see how many shares we can get before this is removed”.  He was shocked and disappointed. As a manager he had championed... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
22 Jul 2020 - 10:35

null A faint air of menace 2

We need to talk about how we talk about Black Lives Matter (BLM) in the work place because the subject still has a faint air of menace about it. If people are reluctant to talk about diversity for fear of saying the wrong thing then organisations will have a tick box approach to diversity which looks impressive but doesn't  change the culture. This all to common superficial approach... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
04 Dec 2018 - 12:05

null Unconscious Bias

Racism and sexism are taboo. Equalities are enshrined in the law yet society still looks unfair. People strenuously deny being racists and yet the evidence of discrimination backs up the claims of people from ethnic and religious minority groups. The explanation, unconscious bias. Basically people don’t know they are doing it. They have involuntarily soaked up attitudes, beliefs and stereotypes... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
09 Mar 2018 - 16:20

null Social Workers Night Out

The football team was made up of social workers, probation officers and their clients. The clients provided the skill, speed and youth, the social workers the organisational skills, transport and reliability, the probation officers the sharp elbows. The social work lecture who ran the team would occasionally organise a team bonding pub crawl. Usually this went off without incident other than... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
13 Sep 2017 - 11:40

null How organisations respond to allegations of racism

  A rather silly attempt at a joke  or evidence of racism? You're the manager you decide? The advice from HR is this isn't going to go away. It shouldn't influence your thinking but the manager  at the centre of this has delivered a very impressive improvement in services ,they get results, cabinet members have noted this and expressed their approval. This wasn't... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
13 Sep 2017 - 11:44

null A racist can spot a racist 

A racist can spot another racist although neither would identify themselves as such. A black person knows a racist even a cleaver one who is careful about what they say and who they say it to. Their problem is convincing the rest of us/ the organisation that this articulate , intelligent professional is doing all they can to block, undermine and sow the seeds of resentment against black... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
03 Jan 2017 - 18:52

null Bug fixers and performance improvers

  The bugs are making people angry and unreasonable. People are disaffected with a deep seated discontent  finding expression in misogyny and racism. Like a virus they infect people, exaggerating prejudices, distorting the way they see the world around them. People become opinionated and intolerant they are dismissive of those who hold different views to them. The bugs... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
08 Jul 2016 - 10:26

null Local Authorites in denial about racism

  Too many public sector organisations including Local Authorities are still in denial about racism due to their management culture.     The Macpherson enquiry emphatically made the point that racism was not just about the extreme behaviour of a few wicked people nor was it limited to unprovoked assaults, abuse shouted in the streets or outright... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
29 Jun 2016 - 09:49

null Is xenophobia acceptable when racism isn't?

If it's not racism then what is it? We have a phrase for unintended prejudice and illinformed behaviour in organisations its " institutional racism". What is the equivalent for the same behaviour amongst voters? Those who voted "out"say it was because of concerns about immigration and they are defiantly not racist. Do they mean that it's not people's colour or religion they object to but simply... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
20 Mar 2015 - 11:39

null Pornography and the work lap top

Three Judges are dismissed and one resigns caught viewing pornography on their work lap top.   Does the social media enable staff to share knowledge and experience or share sexists cartoons and racist jokes? The internet opened up a world of information, and  easier access to pornography. Facebook and Twitter allows fiends to share photos and the minutiae of their day, and... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 13:01

null When did it become ok to be a racist?

  I was not surprised that in a recent survey a third of those responding admitted to being  racially prejudice. I was surprised that they admitted it. When did it become ok to be racist?   If this is how it is in the wider society it must be how some staff feel in hospitals, housing offices,social services departments, schools, police forces, the benefits agency. ... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 13:08

null I'm not being racist just amusingly ironic

  What have a Cambridge varsity ball, a history teacher and a board game got in common? Why would a group of students think Gone with the wind would make a great theme for a university ball with it underlying subject of slavery and racial stereotypes? Why were only three black people accepted on the post graduate history teachers training course in stark contrast to the 506 white... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:09

null Why aren't we talking about it?

There hasn' t been the debate I expected about the current story line in Coronation street. I expected negative comment, claims of political correctness forced down the throats of viewers by out of touch script writers messing with the countries favourite soap. I didn't expect the story line to be largely ignored by the media. Most disappointing was the apparent lack of interest in the... See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:27

null The true legacy of the Games

The true legacy of the Olympic Games is not measured in world records or medals table but progress on a wider front. http://www.publicservice.co.uk/blog_story.asp?id=384
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:27

null This is how racism takes root

    Great article in todays Guardian. The different ways the media covered two cases of men grooming children for sex show how shockingly easy it is to demonise a whole community http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2012/jul/22/how-racism-takes-root See more
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Blair McPherson
wrote a new blog post
12 Jul 2014 - 15:27

null Few racists but a lot of racism

   I have come across very few racists in Local Government but both at work and socially I have heard racist comments and inappropriate “jokes”. I explain this by the fact that people with limited contact with others from different cultures can be insensitive and ill informed getting most of their knowledge from the negative stereotypes to be found in the media If people are not... See more
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