Citigroup seeks gay employees
Lynne Fisher, director of diversity for Citigroup's Corporate and Investment Bank in Europe, said banking was still seen as industry dominated by white, heterosexual males. This was slowly changing as more women and ethnic minorities applied.
But promoting diversity in terms of sexuality can be hard.
"While addressing issues of sexual orientation at work can be more
difficult due to confidentiality considerations, we are still keen to create
a work environment of mutual respect and inclusion for all," said Fisher.
The bank has made recruitment presentations to gay students at London Business School, the London School of Economics and Cambridge University.
Citigroup has also set up a network for gay employees called CitiPride. It promotes a combination of mentoring, industry benchmarking, sensitivity training and contacts with other organisations and the wider community.
Gay networks are active at a number of other banks including HSBC, JP Morgan, UBS Warburg, Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley.
Citigroup says its diversity initiative is also targeting women and ethnic minorities and has set up networks to represent these groups.
"Recruitment activity is reduced, but we still need to place an emphasis on attracting the best and brightest from the widest possible talent pool," said Fisher.
