How to make your business LGBTQ+ inclusive.
Even though LGBTQ+ rights have improved significantly in recent years, discrimination in the workplace remains a real and measurable problem. According to the 2024 EU Fundamental Rights Agency (FRA) LGBTIQ Survey, nearly 1 in 5 LGBTIQ+ workers across Europe experience discrimination at work and for trans and intersex individuals, that figure rises to 1 in 3. A 2024 Randstad survey across 31 countries found that 41% of LGBTQ+ workers have faced discrimination or prejudice at work, and 29% have quit a job because of it.
Creating a genuinely inclusive workplace isn't just the right thing to do, it's how you attract and keep the best people. Here are 7 ways to get started.
#1- Set up and enforce clear policies
Instead of relying on unspoken expectations, create formal policies that define your company's stance on LGBTQ+ rights. These should cover all genders and sexual orientations, apply equally to hiring, and include a clear zero-tolerance position on discrimination whether it comes from employees or clients.
Make your policies easy to find for example on job postings or your company’s intranet. And review them at least once a year to make sure they stay current.
#2 - Listen actively and regularly
Your LGBTQ+ employees have first-hand, daily experience of your company's culture and their insight is irreplaceable. Create genuine channels to hear from them and act on what you learn.
Run anonymous pulse surveys on inclusion and belonging. Hold regular listening sessions or focus groups. And stay open to evolving your approach over time, what works today may need updating as your team grows and changes.
#3 - Educate yourself and your whole team
It's not the role of LGBTQ+ employees to educate their colleagues. That responsibility sits with the company.
Consider partnering with professional organisations that offer LGBTQ+ workplace training. Make it mandatory rather than optional, and cover practical topics like gender-neutral language, pronoun etiquette, and how to support a colleague who is transitioning. In Berlin, organisations like the Uhlala Group offer workplace inclusion programmes specifically tailored to the DACH region.
#4 - Use your voice and your platform
Silence signals indifference. As a company, you have a platform, use it to stand visibly with the LGBTQ+ community, year-round.
Incorporate LGBTQ+ topics into your social media, newsletter, and blog content throughout the year. Make sure your public messaging genuinely reflects your internal culture, tokenistic gestures are quickly noticed. According to the Randstad 2024 survey, nearly 4 in 10 LGBTQ+ workers feel their employer's Pride engagement is purely for show. Authenticity matters.
#5 - Participate in LGBTQ+ events
One of the most visible ways to show where your company stands is simply showing up. Pride events and Christopher Street Day (CSD) marches take place across Germany throughout the summer, Berlin's CSD is on 25 July 2026 and regularly draws over a million participants.
Consider sponsoring or marching as a company, donating to or fundraising for LGBTQ+ organisations, and giving your team the time and encouragement to participate. What you do outside the office says as much about your culture as what happens inside it.
#6 - Review your benefits and everyday language
Inclusive culture lives in the details. The language you use every day and the benefits you offer send a clear signal to employees and candidates alike.
Start with language: normalise pronoun sharing in email signatures and internal tools, and default to gender-neutral terms, "partner" rather than "husband or wife", "they" when referring to someone whose pronouns you don't know. Review your parental leave policy to make it gender-neutral rather than split into separate maternity and paternity tracks. And if your company doesn't yet have gender transition guidelines, a short document explaining how managers and HR should support a colleague who is transitioning, now is a good time to create one.
Closing.
There's no single fix for workplace inclusion, it's an ongoing commitment that touches policies, culture, language, and benefits all at once. But every step counts. We'd love to hear what your company is already doing, or planning to do, to build a more inclusive workplace.
Feel free to share your thoughts with us.