Top lawyer champions diversity in the workplace during Black History Month

One of Thursfields Solicitors’ top lawyers will speak about the importance of diversity in the workplace at three separate events during Black History Month.

Jade Linton, an associate director and HR business partner at Thursfields, was recently recognised in the Reward 300 Index as a leading employment lawyer.

Jade also regularly champions racial equality and is an ambassador for Project Embrace, a campaign designed to address the lack of representation and stereotypes associated with black people in professional spaces.

The events at which she is speaking this month include:

• A staff event on 14 October at Platform Housing Group, one of the UK’s largest housing associations, exploring systematic bias in the workplace.
• A panel discussion with senior leaders of top law firms hosted by the Birmingham Law Society on 16 October, focusing on race and inclusion in the legal sector, and the recruitment and retention of talent from non-white backgrounds.
• A webinar organised by Metro Bank on 29 October that will aim to illustrate the importance of diversity in the workplace and how black professionals can navigate their careers.

Jade, who is one of just three per cent of black lawyers working in England and Wales, said: “More needs to be done to address the barriers to progression faced by minority groups in the UK, as there should be no bar on ambition.

“How can talented individuals from under-represented groups get jobs on merit if the systems which underpin the sectors they wish to work in are not designed with them in mind? 

“There is much work to be done, and whilst I’m happy to be asked to speak at these events I will be really pleased when our words become actions, with sustained and authentic change taking place.”

Jade’s other recent external speaking appearances included a round table event held by the Law Society of England and Wales in August, when she discussed the barriers faced by black people in progressing in the legal sector.

She added: “There are many aspects to my identity, but being black and female are aspects which are immediately seen, and I want to share how this has impacted on my journey in the legal profession to improve awareness and invoke change.”