Chester Pride Week: Wez' Story As we continue to celebrate Chester Pride Week, Wez Smith, shares his experience as an LGBT+ member working in Airbus Broughton.

Can you tell me about your experience coming out in the workplace? Was it something that you were open about from the start or did it take time to feel comfortable enough? "I was out from the start. In my opinion, if you make out like it's not a big issue other people

don't see it as one."

By being open from the start you begin your relationships with people honestly and being gay becomes a factor of who you are. If you have to come out, you present a change of their perception towards you, and that is what a lot of people struggle to deal with. "Some people How has being 'out' in the workplace affected your confidence? distanced themselves, Personally I am fairly thick-skinned, which is almost a prerequisite of working on the shop floor of not out of hatred, but Broughton, so my confidence hasn't changed much since the start. out of an uncertainty What reaction to the news had you anticipated, and how was it ultimately received? over how to address I like to think I am fairly aware and perceptive of people around me, so the outcome was as I had the issue." expected. It was joked about in a humorous way. Very few attempts have been made to actually offend me, but they have happened. People respect the fact that you are upfront with the issue. Some people distanced themselves, not out of hatred, but out of an uncertainty over how to address the issue.

And what advice would you give to those who are uncertain over how to address topics surrounding sexuality and gender?

Ask people. The biggest issue I have found is people are scared to ask because they think the questions might offend. LGBT people are still people. If you ask a genuine question, they won't be offended and will probably feel included and more comfortable seeing as you are willing to take time to find out about them.

What advice would you give to others who are unsure of whether they should 'come out' in the workplace?

Honestly, think about who you work with. Do you think it would be received positively? If not, is the pay- off from coming out going to be worth it? Being thick-skinned, it has never really bothered me, but if jokes and the occasional bit of genuine homophobia is something that you might not be able to handle, then I would recommend staying quiet.

How do you feel attitudes towards LGBT issues are changing?

At the Broughton plant, they aren't. The company is making no effort to change things. There's no effort to increase visibility and no support for anyone who is looking to come out. Airbus seems very uninterested in the topic in general.

How important do you feel further engagement with LGBT issues is, particularly in a work place "I feel it's important to environment? I feel it's important to increase visibility to help increase visibility to normalise LGBT people in the work place. I feel that more support should have been in place a long time ago and I feel amongst the LGBT community, Airbus help normalise LGBT has a reputation as a company that does little to nothing to support LGBT people and that speaks for people in the work itself.

What more can companies do to promote and

place." engage with LGBT issues?

Increase visibility and normalise LGBT issues in a subtle and natural manner. Forcing it down people's throats or making managers send out memos will look like pandering from managers. It won't change anyone's minds and could have a detrimental effect.

How have causes such as Pride helped raise awareness of LGBT issues?

Pride has been brilliant for celebrating accomplishments of how far we have come. It wasn't many years ago that being LGBT was considered a mental health issue and was illegal. It also helps raise visibility on an international scale, normalising LGBT members and bringing to light injustices.

What more do you feel could be done to promote and highlight awareness of LGBT issues in wider society?

I think in wider society we are actually doing a lot. Visibility is great and people see LGBT issues as just a general issue rather than a specifically LGBT issue, which shows that LGBT issues are being normalised. I think the biggest changes need to happen on a local level in companies and organisations that claim to be inclusive, but in reality, are not.