Equality in Scotland’s colleges: collecting and analysing staff equality data

Acknowledgments

ECU would like to thank Sally Harrop for data analysis, and the colleges who participated in this research. Thanks also to those who provided case studies from City of Glasgow College and Cumbernauld College.

Further information

Barbara Lawsoninfo@ecu.ac.uk

IntroductionBy using equality data, colleges can improve their performance in recruiting and developing their staff, but collecting and analysing such data can raise challenges.

This guidance aims to support colleges to overcome some of these challenges by exploring:

= the legal requirements of the Equality Act relating to staff equality data

= how equality data can be used to improve colleges’ performance

= the benefits collecting and using data brings for employees

The guidance includes details of the types of data colleges can collect, considerations relating to analysing data and ways colleges can improve disclosure rates. It is illustrated with evidence from an ECU survey of colleges in Scotland on data collection and case studies of related work.

Legal responsibilities

The Equality Act 2010 affords protection from unlawful discrimination in employment to all staff across the following protected characteristics:

= age

= disability

= gender reassignment

= marriage and civil partnership

= pregnancy and maternity

= race

= religion or belief (including lack of belief)

= sex

= sexual orientation

Through the public sector equality duty (PSED) of the Act, colleges have a legal responsibility to have due regard to the need to:

= eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation

= advance equality of opportunity between people of different groups

= foster good relations between people of different groups

For the protected characteristic of marriage and civil partnership, colleges only have legal requirements to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, harassment and victimisation.

Underpinning the PSED is a set of specific duties, some of which place legal requirements on colleges relating to the collection and use of data, evidence and information.

= Colleges must take steps to gather information on the number of employees by protected characteristics, including information on recruitment, development and retention and use that information to better perform the general duty.

= Colleges must publish a report on progress made in mainstreaming the PSED which should include (if not published previously) an annual breakdown of the information gathered and the progress the college has made in gathering and using information to enable it to better perform the general equality duty.

= Colleges must consider relevant evidence relating to people who share a relevant protected characteristic when developing a set of equality outcomes.

= Colleges must consider relevant evidence relating to people with protected characteristics (including any evidence received from people with relevant protected characteristics) when assessing the impact of any new or revised policies and practices on its ability to advance the public sector duty.

= Colleges are required to publish gender pay gap information.

ECU (2012) The public sector equality duty: specific duties for Scotlandwww.ecu.ac.uk/publications/the-public-sector-equality-duty-specific-duties-for-scotland

When processing and publishing data, colleges must comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998. Colleges must not publish information that would make it possible to identify individuals.

EHRC (2012) Evidence and the public sector equality duty: a guide for public authorities (Scotland)www.equalityhumanrights.com/scotland/public-sector-equality-duty/non-statutory-guidance-for-scottish-public-authorities

In addition to mitigating potential legal costs and reputational damage, meeting the legal requirements outlined will complement college’s strategic work in improving their decision-making and efficiency.

Collecting dataAn accurate and reliable evidence base is needed to initiate changes in policies. Colleges should consider what data they collect, what mechanisms they can use to collect data, and what opportunities they offer staff to share information.

Data categories

To provide evidence of whether a college’s policies and practices are effective, and meet legal requirements under the Equality Act, data should be collected across all protected characteristics.

ECU surveyed colleges about the staff monitoring data they currently collect and their plans for extending data collection in the academic year 2012–13 (this does not include other forms of gathering information).

Figure 1

Over 90% of colleges responded that they currently collect equality data for age, sex, disability, and ethnicity.

If all the colleges who plan to collect monitoring data in the next year do so, the collection of monitoring data across all the protected characteristics will rise to over 70%.

Mechanisms to collect data

A common mechanism colleges use to collect equality information is through updates to individual staff records. This has the advantage of allowing colleges to produce detailed analysis which cross references other variables included in the staff record, such as full- or part-time status, occupation type, department and salary.

Other mechanisms may be useful to supplement this information, particularly if disclosure rates are low. Anonymous staff satisfaction surveys which include opportunities for detailed follow-up questions may give institutions a more thorough understanding of their staff, including those who do not want to disclose particular sensitive information through their staff record.

The ECU survey identified a number of mechanisms colleges have adopted to collect staff equality information. This includes:

= equal opportunities monitoring forms

= staff satisfaction surveys

= evidence from involvement, engagement and consultation exercises with staff such as focus groups and ad hoc meetings

= information on how institutions have assessed the impact of their policies and practices

= annual equality audits

= online self-service mechanisms

Opportunities to collect data

College’s data collection procedures should provide staff with ongoing opportunities to disclose and update equality information throughout their employment at the college. This ensures that information is captured on staff who may withhold disclosure of particular information when first joining an institution, or whose information changes during employment (for example in relation to disability, religion and belief, sexual orientation).

Opportunities that surveyed colleges used for capturing equality status information include:

= job applications

= requests for interview

= induction packs

= development and performance reviews

= on promotion or progression to another role within the college

= exit interviews

= routine requests to staff (such as staff circulars)

= online self-service mechanisms where staff can update their own HR file

= targeted methods such as training sessions, committees, forum meetings, focus groups, equality days and online equality and diversity training

Benefits of collecting dataColleges invest resources in collecting and analysing workforce data in relation to equality characteristics. When this data is effectively used to affect improvements in the recruitment, retention and development of staff, this investment can bring great benefits to the college.

College performance

By analysing equality data, colleges can identify whether their practices result in differences in opportunities and outcomes for people from different equality groups. Once these issues have been identified, colleges can address any concerns through policies or initiatives which can encourage a more motivated workforce, lower absenteeism and greater staff retention, thereby reducing overall costs to the college.

Specifically, collecting and analysing evidence can support colleges to:

= identify barriers that are preventing the recruitment of the best staff from the widest pool of applicants

= ensure staff development initiatives are reaching relevant staff

= understand employees’ requirements

= understand management or performance issues

= highlight to staff and potential job applicants the college’s commitment to equality

There may be reasonable and non-discriminatory reasons for differences in staff levels or performance issues; evidence allows colleges to recognise difference and manage it as part of a wider equality and diversity and organisational strategy.

A college monitors pregnancy and maternity in recruitment through a form that is separated on application so that shortlisters and interviewers are not given access to this information. This helps the college identify whether:

= some jobs and roles are off-putting to pregnant women and whether particular groups of women are not applying for them as a consequence

= pregnant women are applying but are not being shortlisted and/or offered the job – this allows colleges to identify whether there is a particular issue for internal applications and investigate whether women who are known to be pregnant are being discriminated against at the shortlisting/interview phase

= jobs that are advertised as having the possibility of being part-time or on a job share encourage more applicants from those who are pregnant or who have recently been on maternity leave

By using evidence, a college identifies that people with a particular protected characteristic are not developing and progressing through the college to the extent expected compared with their presence in the general working population. One of the results of this is a high pay gap between people from different groups.

This identification is used to initiate a review of the college’s staff training, development and appraisal methods, supported by internal research into the perceptions of the current training methods within the target group. The college also reviews its external recruitment methods for senior management positions to ensure that they are targeting people from underrepresented groups.

A member of staff updates her staff record to disclose that she is experiencing mental distress. With her consent, a discussion with a human resources representative and the staff member’s line manager is initiated to determine whether any reasonable adjustments are required to support the member of staff in their role. This includes looking at flexible start and finish times, different distribution of hours across the week and options to work from home. The member of staff is supported by her institution and is able to continue to work at a high standard.

Benefits for staff

Benefits for staff of a college using equality data include:

= an opportunity to discuss workplace support that may be required, for example disability-related and/or caring-related reasonable adjustments

= targeted communications about specific workplace interventions and development programmes for underrepresented groups

= involvement in supporting the college to create and shape an inclusive and engaging workplace where everyone is treated with respect and dignity and the diverse requirements of staff are met

A college collects data on the religion or belief of their staff, and follows this up with a staff satisfaction survey outlining detailed questions around improvements to the working environment. This provides evidence that staff would benefit from:

= adaptations to catering to meet the diverse requirements of staff

= spaces for prayer or quiet contemplation

The college undergoes further consultation with religion and belief working groups (consisting of staff and students of different religions and beliefs) to assist the college in ensuring that any changes to policy are targeted at the requirements of current and potential staff.

Considerations when analysing dataHaving collected information on their staff, colleges may want to consider the following when analysing, or presenting, any data.

Benchmarking

Published information will be more accessible if key trends and inequalities are pointed out or if a short narrative explaining these points accompanies the data. A way of providing this context is to compare college information with national evidence, which may also help to identify long-standing inequalities that institutions may choose to explore locally.

College information could be compared against:

= national and local populations

= national and local employment levels

= national and local student numbers

= performance indicators from previous years

Scottish Government. Evidence finder. Online resource. www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/People/Equality/Equalities

Scottish Funding Council. Infact database. Online resource.www.sfc.ac.uk/statistics/further_education_statistics/infact_database/infact_database.aspx

Scottish Funding Council (2011) College performance indicators 2010-11 www.sfc.ac.uk/web/FILES/Statistics_FE_PIs/College_performance_indicators_2010-11_chart14updated_14.03.12.pdf

ECU (2012) Equality in colleges in Scotland: statistical report 2012www.ecu.ac.uk/publications/equality-in-colleges-stats-12

Small numbers

There are likely to be small numbers of people disclosing particular protected characteristics, for example in relation to gender identity, or for particular impairments or specific ethnicities. It is therefore not uncommon for colleges, when analysing data, to group the data into broader categories, such as ‘disabled staff’ or ‘black and minority ethnic staff’, to ensure sample sizes are large enough to be significant and also to avoid identifying individual staff members in reports.

If colleges do group data together information in this way during analysis, it is important to be aware that this may disguise significant variations between individual groups. Alternative methods of data collection, for example focus groups and interviews, may therefore be required to get a more detailed understanding of particular issues within your college.

Using statistical methods

It is useful to involve colleagues responsible for holding and analysing information in the process of analysing data, as they will have expertise in interpretation and analysis and be able to ensure the information you are using is significant.

Cumbernauld College has developed an equality data tool to support analysis of student retention and attainment at course level in relation to gender, age, ethnicity and disability. The tool is able to simplify the process of data analysis, making it accessible to staff without specialist database knowledge.

The tool provides users with equality information in graphical format, segmented within the categories gathered at enrolment and throughout the year, with numerical data superimposed on the graphs. It enables equality data to be embedded within the annual course review process, giving staff a wider ownership of inclusion and has been used within a variety of college working groups, in particular the learning and teaching group and the equality and diversity group.

The technical specification was driven by teaching staff, who have supported other colleagues in using the evaluation tool.

The college conducted an internal survey which suggested that staff found the new online system easier to use while raising their awareness of equality within their courses.

Improving disclosure ratesStaff may be anxious or reluctant to disclose personal information for fear of discrimination and being singled out, for example when being asked to disclose information such as sexual orientation or mental health. However colleges can alleviate some of these concerns by developing a supportive culture where staff can make an informed decision about disclosing.

Communicate effectively

Internal communications around data collection should explain why the data is being collected and how it will be used, shared and stored.

The more employees are aware that information will be used to introduce positive changes to increase equality and promote an inclusive and diverse environment, the greater their willingness to participate will be. Conversely, if staff do not understand why equality data questions are being asked of them they are less likely to complete the information, leading to incomplete and inaccurate data.

Colleges could therefore ensure that they communicate that monitoring is required to ensure that their policies and practices are fair and do not discriminate and support staff in reaching their potential, as well as being a legal requirement.

It is important to ensure that staff responsible for collecting and monitoring data are fully trained and understand the value of this information. All staff engaged in managing information systems should be aware of the issues of security and be sensitive to issues of confidentiality and disclosure.

Clarity should be provided on whether information disclosed will be used for statistical purposes or result in further contact from the college to provide further support, or to participate in other evidence gathering tools such as focus groups.

Information about an individual’s disability status is being used as evidence for a college to build an inclusive environment through ensuring policies and practices are fair. The college clarifies that:

= the data will be aggregated, so that no individuals can be identified

= this information will be shared with staff who are driving through particular organisational changes, and published as part of the colleges legal requirements

Where data is to be shared with particular members of staff to instigate discussions around workplace adjustments (whether physical adaptations or adjustments to working patterns for example), staff are made aware of who the information will be shared with, or told that they will be invited to a meeting with particular staff members or a department to discuss any adjustments.

Staff should be given the option to choose not to share the information, for example, with their line manager, but also be provided with an explanation that this limits what the institution can do to support them.

Staff may have legitimate concerns about how information will be stored. Colleges should always ensure that they have developed the appropriate systems and safeguards to enable the safe storage and analysis of this data. Communications around data should therefore outline that the

information will be stored securely in line with the Data Protection Act 1998, and who will have access to it.

Develop a culture for disclosure

Colleges can improve disclosure rates through developing a culture that takes actions to promote equality and diversity.

Demonstrating senior management commitment to equality

College values, as outlined in mission statements and other promotional materials, usually contain declarations about supporting all staff and students to achieve. Ensuring senior leadership commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion will support a workplace environment which encourages everyone to share these organisational values.

Colleges should also seek to ensure that senior managers are equipped to understand the benefits of equality monitoring and the strategic benefits to promoting an inclusive and supportive workplace culture. For example, equality, diversity and inclusion champions can be used to drive strategies forward and ensure that equality remains a pivotal issue on management agendas. A diversity champion does not need to be an expert in this field nor share the protected characteristic that they are championing. It is important however that they have significant authority within the college to influence change, model equality, diversity and inclusion through their own behaviour and challenge inappropriate behaviour at work.

Ensuring all staff are aware that they have a role promoting college values

It is essential to gain support from all departments, staff members and students and that they understand the purpose of any monitoring exercise. If monitoring is considered to be purely bureaucratic, the evidence collected may not support or inform college development. To challenge this perception colleges can provide examples of how equality monitoring data has been used previously and evidence this success.

Engaging with internal and external stakeholders

Support from a range of stakeholders helps to ensure that the data a college collects is relevant, legally compliant and supportive of the broader college equality and diversity strategy. It can also raise awareness of the benefits of data collection and how it supports service provision.

Colleges may look to engage with:

= staff

= trades unions

= staff networks, including equality networks

= local community groups

= local and national equality organisations, for example Stonewall Scotland and Scottish Transgender Partnership

= other public bodies, for example the NHS

To ensure appropriate internal support, colleges may decide to invest resources to develop staff networks for parents and carers, women, disabled staff and LGB staff, for example.

Recognising and celebrating individuality

An inclusive workforce is based on an acknowledgement of difference and an understanding of people’s different requirements. Therefore, recognising and celebrating individuality will support the development of a workplace culture that considers behaviours and attitudes and is supportive of diversity.

Colleges may consider organising specific ‘diversity events’, including Black History Month, Pride Week and International Women’s Day. Any inclusive activity should be organised with engagement from all staff teams to ensure ownership, confidence and commitment to the equality and diversity organisational plan.

When the City of Glasgow College decided to collect equality data through their current staff record system, the principal emailed all staff to let them know of the decision to monitor for additional protected characteristics and all members of the college’s board updated their staff record.

Equality and diversity practitioners held meetings with staff to answer questions around why the data was being collected, what it would be used for, who would have access to it, and how it would be kept secure. This raised awareness of how the law protects staff from harassment and discrimination across all protected characteristics, and gave staff the information to decide whether disclosing protected characteristics, in particular their sexual orientation, to the college was what they wanted to do. Reassurances were made that all monitoring forms contained a ‘prefer not to say’ option, which is integral to providing staff with the autonomy to make their own decision. A series of FAQs were developed and shared with staff throughout the college.

The college undertook engagement and communication activities to raise awareness and understanding of equality monitoring, particularly monitoring sexual orientation. This included using postcards and posters from Stonewall Scotland, and a full-page advert in the staff magazine. Notes in staff payslips were used to remind staff to update their staff record.

The board asked heads of department to update staff records to further ensure that all staff were aware of the requirement. The college looked at the data to see if any particular departments required any follow-up work to increase the number of staff responses within particular teams.