Developing an Equal Opportunity Programme: The Case of a Large Dutch Bank Available to Purchase

Establishing an equal opportunity personnel policy in a Dutch organisation is dependent on the goodwill, initiative and perseverence of a number of key members of the organisation. Outside pressure from the government, labour movement or employers' associations is still too weak to have any noticeable effect on company policy regarding equal employment. A policy plan must be followed by decisions to put it into effect; allocation of responsibility for execution; methods to monitor whether the policy is being followed; and internal publicity and public relations to make the programme known throughout the whole organisation. Where large organisations are involved, consideration must be given to introducing the policy in the same way as a project. In spite of the lack of prior commitment, a Dutch study that examined the position of women and the possibility of achieving a more even distribution of banking positions among men and women in 1980 affected a particular bank's personnel policy. An equal opportunity programme took shape between 1980 and 1985. The problems that arose and the manner in which they were solved is discussed.