Assessment of equality
It is important that the equality plan is based on information collected by the organisation so that it genuinely meets the needs identified in the organisation for realisation of equality. The drafting of the plan starts with an assessment of the organisation’s operations and operating environment from the perspective of equality.
The assessment of the baseline may utilise information already available to the organisation, such as personnel surveys and customer feedback – keeping data protection issues in mind. The assessment may also utilise, for example, an existing plan for gender equality.
However, not all issues related to discrimination and inappropriate situations are always sufficiently raised unless they are specifically asked about. Therefore, it is advisable to carry out a separate assessment of equality, asking questions of, for example, personnel, stakeholders and customers on a case-by-case basis.
Methods suitable for the assessment of equality have been collected on the Assessment of equality page on Finlex.
Tip
Assessment of equality can be based on a number of data collection methods and sources, such as
- a mapping of how existing strategies and guidelines take into account issues of equality and non-discrimination,
- statistics and data describing the operating environment and customer base
- statistics and data on personnel,
- indicators of the quality of operations and other performance management data,
- customer feedback,
- complaints concerning activities,
- equality surveys aimed at personnel and customers,
- consultation with various groups,
- other specific studies, such as accessibility surveys and monitoring of legislative drafting.