FCA sticks to bias training despite govt 'phase out'

According to two Freedom of Information Act requests by PanaceaAdviser, sent in July and August this year, the City watchdog confirmed it would still press ahead with such training.

However, the FCA could not quantify any costs involved in carrying out the training, nor state any definitive benefits.

It also said it did not have any data by which results could be measurable or quantified.

Unconscious bias training is designed to raise awareness of biases that could negatively affect a staff's decision making and behaviour. It seeks to ultimately eliminate discriminatory behaviour. 

The FCA stated it measured inclusion based on answers to statements such as: People here are treated fairly regardless of their age; People here are treated fairly regardless of their race or ethnic origin; and People here are treated fairly regardless of their sexual orientation.

However, it said there was no financial value attached to this.

Responding to Derek Bradley, chief executive of PanaceaAdviser, the FCA's September response said: "There are no internal costs other than resource costs, which cannot be calculated due to various individuals working on ad hoc bases."

Ministers have concluded that unconscious bias training does not achieve its intended aims.Lopez

When asked what elements of consumer detriment and regulatory failings could have been prevented by such training, or how the integrity of the UK financial system has been enhanced, the FCA said: "We can confirm that we do not hold the information you have requested."

Nor did the FCA answer why the courses were still being run, given the 2020 government directive to phase out such courses.

An additional FOI sent to the Financial Ombudsman Service brought about a similar response, saying it did not hold the information asked for and was not "required to create new information in the form of providing commentary to answer a request". 

Bradley commented: "One could be forgiven for thinking that, in both cases, it seemed a good idea at the time, on message and all that, but no thought about why it was done beyond ticking a woke box.

"In a written ministerial statement on unconscious bias training last year the government stated that 'Unconscious bias training [that] typically aims to raise awareness of the potential biases and cognitive shortcuts, which may negatively affect decision-making and behaviour in the workplace was to be scrapped for all civil servants'.

"This sounds like government-speak for 'it’s a complete waste of time and money'. If ever there were an example of regulated firms' time and money being wasted, one would be hard pushed to find it.

"If the only reason to do it is to tick a box marked inclusivity and you don’t know how to measure the success of such training, don’t bother doing it."

In December 2020, Julia Lopez, then parliamentary secretary, published a written statement on unconscious bias training, referring to earlier work done by the Government Equalities Office. 

She wrote: "Earlier this year, the Government Equalities Office commissioned the behavioural insights team for a summary of the evidence on unconscious bias and diversity training.

"Titled ‘Unconscious bias and diversity training - what the evidence says’, the report highlights that ‘there is currently no evidence that this training changes behaviour in the long term or improves workplace equality in terms of representation of women, ethnic minorities or other minority groups’.

"It also states that there is emerging evidence of unintended negative consequences."

As a result, Lopez stated: "In light of its findings, ministers have concluded that unconscious bias training does not achieve its intended aims.

"It will therefore be phased out in the civil service. We encourage other public sector employers to do likewise."

Bradley added: "The government was correct “there is no recognised way of assuring the quality of unconscious bias training”. Additionally, there was “no conclusive proof that it changes behaviour or improves workplace equality in the long term”.

This is just another example of why the FCA should be answerable to the government on their use of spend given their incongruous actions and unwillingness to apply a value to their senior leaders' and managers' time."

A spokesperson from Fos said: “The Financial Ombudsman provides training to staff on a wide range of issues, including diversity and inclusion.

"Our work involves being fair and taking into account different views and perspectives. The training we provide allows our staff to best help the people who use our service, whatever their needs."

An FCA spokesperson said: “As set out in our annual Diversity Report, we will be reviewing and updating our diversity and inclusion strategy in an evidence-based way.

"This will include our suite of diversity and inclusion training, and how we deliver training most effectively. We will publish full details of progress on all aspects of our plans in our 2021/2022 Annual Diversity Report.”

It is understood the FCA does incur specific costs on the unconscious bias training, which it reviewed in October last year. It is understood the overall cost of review and implementation was more than £3,000 plus with an annual cost of more than £600, including VAT.

Find out more: 

FTAdviser is committed to promoting diversity and inclusion across financial services, both for the financial health of the nation and the ongoing sustainability of the financial advice sector.

But as reported many times, D&I needs to be more than a tick-box exercise - it needs to be measurable, quantifiable and beneficial. 

Our latest winners of the FTAdviser Diversity In Finance Awards 2021 have demonstrated exactly that: how they have gone beyond training and 'box-ticking' towards making D&I part and parcel of their workplaces. 

For best-practice tips and ideas on how to implement practical, successful and measurable D&I policies and initiatives, click here to read some of the winners' case studies on how they are achieving business success through better D&I.

simoney.kyriakou@ft.com