At OVO we talk a lot about the importance of Belonging, and we have amazing Networks that help sustain that conversation day in and day out. They cover a range of topics and identities, ranging from gender, to age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, mental health, disability, and beliefs.
Our OVO Believe network is there to promote, recognise and celebrate all faiths, religions and beliefs, whether a belief is religious, philosophical or ideological, it will influence how someone lives their life or perceives the world around them, and we know it is so important to their feeling of belonging at work.
In our diverse society, being able to work well with colleagues and clients of different faith, belief, and cultural backgrounds is of the utmost importance. This includes being able to communicate about differences productively and meaningfully, and having the knowledge to meet different needs in our work.
The OVO Believe network has worked hard to raise awareness of how we do this leading to OVO being named the number one faith friendly workplace in the UK in 2023.
They run monthly learning session on a different faith, religion or belief, they have a partnership with the Faith and Belief forum to ensure we get the support we need for our people at OVO and they recognise and celebrate key dates through educational resource packs – such as supporting our people during Ramadan – and celebrations such as Diwali or Easter to name a few.
OVO Believe have really pushed the boundaries in the energy industry. We listened to our people and implemented solutions to problems stopping us being inclusive. Two examples of this are that our people in metering were unable to be provided with a hijab or turban due to the fire and spark risks associated with their role. We quickly identified that there were no providers of religious headwear which looked good or met our safety requirement. We worked with ‘Fashion Delivered’ to source material from Spain which has an electric arc protective value of 11 cal/cm2 (ELIM). Then the network worked on how they should look – with members taking to cutting and sewing the fabric. OVO are now the first people in the UK to launch such headwear that is fashionable, lightweight and comfortable – both the hijab and turbans.
Our engineers are required to wear steel toe capped boots when in customers homes to ensure they are protected however this was an issue where religions required that no outdoor shoes were worn inside – the solution provided by the network was simple; give the engineers a spare pair of boots which are ‘indoor’ boots – so now all OVO engineers carry a spare pair of boots.
We held the first round table event for C Suite members to come together to talk about religion and faith in the workplace and why this is so important.
The network have worked hard to create an elearning module for all our people to complete on understanding why religion IS something that we DO talk about in the workplace which has been very educational for so many people.
They ensured that all our hubs have a multi faith room and that we have a code for people to use when they need to come off the phones to observe their prayer time.
OVO Believe have arranged for Hidayah to come to do talk for us during Pride to ensure our Muslim LGBTQ+ community know there is support and also arranged a session by the Asian Women’s Resource Centre to help us support victims of domestic abuse at work
They also played a huge part in supporting the organisation on the first UK Faith at work conference.
They are leading the way when it comes to faith, religion and belief in the workplace and our society and they really deserve some special recognition
