Hiring ex-offenders and homeless morally right, says M&S

Work needed to overcome prejudices, says HR director Tanith Dodge

Hiring people from disadvantaged groups is not only “ethically right” but benefits business, according to the HR director of Marks & Spencer.

Speaking at the Talent Pipeline Conference, organised by the Employers Forum on Age and Employers Forum on Belief, Tanith Dodge outlined how the retailer encouraged a workforce diverse in age, and was working with the third sector to deliver development programmes for ex-offenders, homeless people and school leavers.

“We find our work is helping people that are more disadvantaged and have difficulty finding employment, and we do it because we believe that morally and ethically it is the right thing to do”, Dodge told the delegates in London.

CIPD research from last December found that less than a quarter of employers hired staff from disadvantaged groups, including young people with few qualifications, the long-term unemployed, ex-offenders and older workers.