EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY MONITORING

You may be aware that Dumfries & Galloway Council has various responsibilities and duties under the Equality Act 2010 so it needs to take steps to collect and monitor employee equality and diversity information, specifically in relation to the “protected characteristics”.  They will soon send out communications to all staff informing them of this legal requirement and how the information will be collected.

The information provided will help build an accurate and up-to-date “picture” of the diversity of the Council’s workforce.  We are assured that the information will be collected and held securely, remain confidential and that publication of any information, which is a legal requirement, will not identify any individual.  The information will be used for monitoring purposes, identifying areas where the Council can better meet its duties, and to inform future policy development.

It is important to state that the questionnaire is voluntary and because it asks for sensitive personal information there will be the option for employees to indicate “prefer not to say”.  Given the importance of this initiative (and it being a statutory obligation) UNISON would welcome your co-operation in encouraging everyone to complete this information as quickly as possible.

If any of our members feel unable to disclose this info then that is understandable, however at the very least it would be helpful if they could indicate that they “prefer not to say”.  This not only satisfies the Council’s statutory obligation but will also limit the need to ask staff again so will be an effective cost saving.