Cognizant has been recognized as a ‘Gold’ employer by the India Workplace Equality Index (IWEI) 2022 for ensuring an inclusive culture and workplace for its LGBTQ+ employees and demonstrating a commitment to the LGBTQ+ community.
The ‘Gold’ employer recognition is the highest rating awarded by IWEI, India’s only national benchmarking tool that annually assesses employers’ progress and impact on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) inclusion in the workplace. This year,105 organisations across 17 sectors participated in IWEI.
The top employer recoginition reflects Cognizant’s focus in nine areas to advance LGBTQ+ inclusion, including, HR policies and benefits, diversity and inclusion hiring practices, a dedicated LGBTQ+ employee resource group, allies and senior leadership within the organisation, raising internal awareness and external community engagements, among others.
The efforts are a part of Cognizant’s D&I program named Completely Cognizant which is dedicated to building a work culture where everyone belongs, feels respected and empowered to do their best work. The company believes a workplace where everyone can thrive is not only the right thing to do, it is a business priority.
In addition to establishing more diverse hiring panels and creating gender-neutral job descriptions, Cognizant has been focusing on hiring from the LGBTQ+ community. This year, the company was a platinum sponsor of RISE 2022, India’s premier LGBTQ+ job fair hosted by Pride Circle. Cognizant also offers medical benefits that include health insurance for same-sex partners, gender reassignment surgery, hormone therapy and counselling to help support the gender transition process.
Additionally, Cognizant Outreach – the company’s employee-led volunteering program, along with partner NGOs, has launched initiatives to empower the transgender community in India with technical skills to help increase employability.
Cognizant’s India chapter of its LGBTQ+ employee affinity group called Embrace has witnessed a 15 percent increase in membership over the past year. The group fosters a culture of support within the company by facilitating events to educate, network and share ideas among the community. Additionally, since 2021, Embrace’s India chapter has been organizing LGBTQ+ awareness and sensitizations sessions across the country. More than 9,000 Cognizant associates and 7,000 students at partner B-schools have participated so far. The company has also created a LGBTQ+ guide to raise LGBTQ+ awareness, understanding and acceptance among its associates.