Bridging the Gap: How Lawyer Kristen Pennington Ties Social Justice Goals to Business Goals
When Kristen Pennington attended Glendon, her extracurricular activities made it easy to apply what she learned in the classroom.
“In the morning, I would go to my Women’s Studies classes and learn about intersectionality and the feminization of poverty,” Pennington recalls. “In the afternoon, I would be volunteering in the women’s shelter on campus, helping organize food drives and planning campaigns to raise awareness about violence against women.”
Clubs, internships, research assistant positions, student government roles, and more gave her ample opportunities to put what she learned into practice.
By the time she graduated from Glendon with a BA in Canadian Studies and Women’s Studies, she was armed with two important tools: A clear view of the change she wished to see in the world and a practical understanding of how to make it happen.
Today, she is an Associate Lawyer of Employment and Human Rights Law at Grosman Gale Fletcher Hopkins LLP. While people often associate the legal profession with reactivity and litigation, Pennington emphasizes proactivity in her professional work.
“I encourage employers not to be reactive to problems like discrimination and harassment in the workplace, but to be proactive in creating a workplace culture that minimizes the risk of differential treatment or violence happening in the first place.”
Pennington pairs this proactivity with real-world strategies for building an equitable future within an imperfect present.
“In a perfect world, employers would get onboard with diversity simply because it is the morally sound thing to do. But the reality is that I have to be able to get practical, to understand an employer’s business model, their industry, the dynamic of their workplace, and the way to pitch proactivity as beneficial and worthwhile to their organization.”
As for the future, Pennington hopes that her job undergoes a tremendous transformation. For example, rather than fighting just to keep women safe in the workplace, she looks forward to helping women review their employment contracts for high-profile job offers or counselling them on how to negotiate for raises.
In the meantime, she’s happy to use what she’s learned to help others.
“Working in social justice is all about understanding theory and then applying it in a practical, digestible way,” Pennington says. “That essentially sums up my experience at Glendon in a nutshell.”