Until starting at TD, Lisa Paley wasn't bringing her whole self to work.Ěý
Now the associate vice president of human resources, Paley recalls how her manager set the tone for her opening up about who she was in the workplace. Ěý
“When I started at TD I was in a junior position within the branch banking world,” she says. “The first day on the job, my branch manager just started talking casually in the lunchroom about how he and his husband were headed out on a boat trip on the weekend. No one in the room batted an eye.”
Hearing the manager speak openly about his same-sex relationship gave Paley a boost of confidence, and was a welcome change from her previous workplace.
“Up until working at TD, I was not closeted in my personal life with my family or friends, but being out at work, and the other companies I worked for, it was just not comfortable and nor was it encouraged,” she says.
At TD, Paley was able to get her wife on the company’s health and wellness benefits without fear of homophobia at work, and within three months of starting at TD, Paley attended her first Pride Parade with her partner.Ěý
Now 12 years later, along with dedicated recruitment specialists, Paley is working to recruit more LGBTQ employees.
“We are a bank of choice for the LGBTQ community, and we want to be an employer of choice as well,” she says.
Of course, Paley knows that creating a welcoming and inclusive work environment for the LGBTQ community requires continual care and attention. To that end, TD has several initiatives.
First and foremost is diversity training, to make sure that non-LGBTQ employees are knowledgeable allies.
“We consider diversity at TD as a mandatory part of who we are as an organization,” she says. “So every single employee goes through diversity training. You have to do it regularly, and that's because the world of diversity is changing,” Paley says.
There’s also funding for other training, which management can use when the need arises. For example, Paley says TD is working with a transgender-focused consulting firm to provide workshops on how to support trans coworkers and customers.
“We know the experiences of trans people - similar stories of overcoming adversity and bias – but they have a very different experience in terms of being themselves. We almost had to take the T out of the LGBTQ acronym and spend some time there,” she says.
All TD employees, including managers across every business line in B.C. will be going through the training in the next three months, Paley says.
“It's a 90-minute program to walk them through experiences, education and really some self reflection on their own relationship with gender.”
Beyond recruitment and training, TD supports the LGBTQ community through volunteering and financial support. Paley says her experience at TD has shed light on how important corporate social responsibility is in her career.Ěý
“TD's commitment to this community involvement has provided me with the opportunity from a development perspective to mentor other LGBTQ people at the bank, and be on the board of a couple of different organizations, supporting the community,” she says.
Specifically, TD allocates eight work hours per year to each employee to volunteer at an organization of their choice. The company also recognizes staff members who go above and beyond.
“At any registered charity, if you volunteer 40 hours, TD will actually give money to that organization, up to $500,” says Paley.
Currently, TD is recruiting members of the LGBTQ community at all levels, and Paley says the company is committed to making sure that representation at the senior level reflects the company’s commitment to diversity.
“The natural place is to start at an entry level, but if you have skills and experience at a senior level and you're looking for an organization that will actually allow you to be yourself at work, please come to TD or contact me,” she says.
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- Lisa Paley is the Associate Vice President of Human Resources at TD Bank Group. She can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] or by finding her on LinkedIn
