This action plan describes how NGU works systematically to promote equality and diversity and limits the risk of discrimination in our organisation. The plan contributes to fulfilling NGU's obligations under Norway's Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act and meets the European Commission's requirements for a Gender Equality Plan (GEP) for participants in Horizon Europe.
Version 1.0, 2022-2024.
Summary
Topics covered in NGU's action plan for equality and diversity include, but are not restricted to:
- A description of the gender equality situation at NGU today, and the framework for the work.
- How the preparation of the action plan for equality and diversity has been organised and who has
participated in the work. - Gender-disaggregated statistics for job groups, salaries, part-time work and temporary employees
and recruitment, as well as data on nationality. - A description of the organisation and the scope of NGU's internal work with gender equality and
diversity, including training and competence building.
Concrete goals for 2022-2024
For 2022-2024, the action plan describes concrete goals and measures for the organisation's focus
areas and culture, management, data collection, training, salary policy and career development. The
goals are to:
- Strengthen organisational tools that facilitate equality, inclusion and diversity.
- Clarify roles and responsibilities in gender equality work.
- Systematic data collection, monitoring and reporting.
- Increase knowledge about gender equality, inclusion and diversity in the organisation.
- Provide equal pay for equal work, regardless of gender or other differences.
- Fight prejudice and internalising discriminatory actions.
- Develop zero tolerance for - and prevention of - bullying, harassment and unwanted sexual
attention. - Provide equal opportunities for career development, regardless of gender or other differences.
NGU's management has discussed and adopted the action plan and it is publicly available via ngu.no and our internal website.
1. Preface
Equality and anti-discrimination activities at the Geological Survey of Norway (NGU) shall promote gender equality and prevent discrimination against employees, regardless of gender, ethnicity, national origin, language, religion and beliefs, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and age.
Equality is not just about gender balance; it is also about equal opportunities and a fair distribution of resources. To achieve equality, we must demonstrate a lasting commitment to change.
Various actors must be involved, and many factors must be considered when resources are allocated or new employees are hired. We can lose sight of equality considerations during day-to-day operations if goals, roles and responsibilities are not transparent or poorly grounded.
Gender Equality Plans as an eligibility criterion in Horizon Europe
The European Commission has made Gender Equality Plans (GEP) at the organisational level a requirement for all applicants and participants of Horizon Europe proposals in 2022 and beyond. NGU participates as an applicant and partner in several Horizon Europe calls for proposals.
2. Introduction
NGU maps Norway's geology. NGU strives to meet society's need for basic geological knowledge and thus contribute to increased value creation and sustainable economic growth. NGU is an agency under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries (NFD). NGU's headquarters are in Trondheim, and our 200 employees form a highly international work environment.
NGU's vision is «Geology for society - knowledge for the future. We proudly carry NGU's tradition into the future. We put geology on the agenda. Our knowledge supports sensible, holistic decision-making for the benefit of society.
NGU has two main goals, which are formulated in NFD's allocation letter to NGU:
- NGU will ensure that Norway's geology and geological resources are mapped to produce high-resolution, high-quality, and valuable data.
- NGU will make knowledge easily accessible and free of charge for users from business, construction, transport, civil defence, environmental issues, and land-use planning.
Research is an integral part of NGU's work and products and a prerequisite for delivering high-quality maps that meet international standards on behalf of Norway.
NGU has three core values: interactivity, trust and integrity.
Interactivity
Our most important results are produced through collaboration, team effort and close contact with our users and partners. We share knowledge and are open and honest. We support and motivate one another throughout the organisation.
Trust
We possess a positive view of human nature and mutual trust. Therefore, we expect open and honest communication and that each employee contributes to solutions that benefit our users, our partners and NGU. Furthermore, open and transparent relationships between leadership and employees help build a culture of mutual trust and understanding.
We uphold honesty and meet high ethical standards in any situation. The combination of a clear societal mission and our professional expertise makes us proud of our results. We meet our colleagues, partners, and users as equals and with mutual respect.
NGU's core values reflect our basic attitude when cooperating internally and externally, and they motivate our work on gender equality.
NGU's personnel and salary policy describe some overall goals for gender equality work.
2.2 Legislation
The Act related to equality and prohibition against discrimination (the Gender Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act) of 16 June 2017 (amended 1 January 2022) aims to promote equality and prevent discrimination based on gender, pregnancy, leave in connection with childbirth or adoption, care responsibilities, ethnicity, religion, belief, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age or combinations of these factors.
«Equality» means equal status, equal opportunities and equal rights. In addition, equality presupposes accessibility and accommodation. The specific objective of the Act is to improve the position of women and minorities in society. This Act shall help to dismantle disabling barriers created by society and prevent the creation of new barriers.
Activity and reporting duty
Sections 26 and 26a of the Act cover the employer's activity and reporting duty (Aktivitets- og redegjørelsesplikt - ARP). The activity and reporting duty requires all public and private employers with more than 50 employees are obliged to make active, targeted and systematic efforts to promote equality.
The activity obligation entails a requirement to:
- a.Investigate whether there is a risk of discrimination or other barriers to equality
- b.Analyse the causes of identified risks
- c.Implement measures suited to counteract discrimination and promote greater equality and diversity
- d. Evaluate the results of efforts made under a) to c).
The reporting duty means that employers must publish a statement in the annual report (or another document available to the public) on the actual status of equality in the organisation and what it is doing to comply with its duty.
This action plan for gender equality and diversity contributes to fulfilling NGU's obligations under the Equality and Anti-Discrimination Act.
2.3. Employer policy values
Norway's state employees work on behalf of society. The work of state employees is based on four core state values: Democracy, the rule of law, professional integrity and efficiency. These also represent the value basis for the state's employer policy.
While the societal mission describes what goals the civil service agency is to achieve, the core values provide the framework for how the goals are to be achieved. Values and responsibilities in the state employer policy may be connected to many of the UN's sustainability goals and targets.
State agencies shall reflect the diversity in the Norwegian population in terms of gender, age, functional ability, ethnic background, sexual orientation, etc. Diversity in the state workforce supports productivity and performance and ensures that all citizens receive good service regardless of background and life experience.
2.4. An equal society for all
Norway's task towards a more inclusive work environment (inkluderingsdugnad) is a shared societal mission to draw more people into the workforce. Here, the state must take the lead.
Although achieving full equality in society will involve private and public sectors, the state has adopted a clear target: Five (5) per cent of new state employees should have a disability or a gap in their CV.
This state-led mission signals that people with disabilities and gaps in their CV represent valuable competence and can strengthen the workforce. When hiring new employees, state agencies must recruit the best-qualified candidates, recruit more broadly and not overlook competence when they are filling vacancies and a need to hire new staff. In addition, NGU must facilitate an inclusive hiring policy characterised by diversity.
3. The current equality status at NGU
3.1. Personnel and salary policy
Inclusive leadership and personnel policy are important for preventing and reducing sick leave, improving attendance and the working environment, preventing exclusion and resignations, and maintaining NGU's status as an attractive workplace. In addition, the pursuit of diversity, gender equality and equal treatment is beneficial and serves the organisation's interest.
NGU's personnel policy shall contribute to recruiting, developing and retaining highly qualified and motivated employees and shall facilitate that employees are offered a fair salary development. Furthermore, with the active involvement of employee unions and committees, NGU's overriding goal is to facilitate an inclusive personnel policy. In particular, NGU's personnel policy and recruitment measures shall facilitate workplace diversity, especially concerning gender, ethnicity, functional ability and age (ref. NGU's personnel and salary policy).
NGU's local salary policy shall contribute to recruiting, retaining and motivating skilled employees. Our pay policy must stimulate the development of professional and scientific competence as well as leadership. The salary policy will motivate employees to support NGU's goals. The salary policy shall always ensure that
NGU has the best possible competence for performing the work.
A transparent salary policy, and its outcome, are important for monitoring gender balance, preventing unintentional consequences of the payroll system and preventing any misunderstandings and unclarity regarding offered salary or salary stipulations.
Every year NGU prepares salary statistics, which are published in NGU's annual report. Additional statistics are prepared in connection with salary negotiations which are made available to trade union representatives upon written request. In 2021, gender equality was a special condition for salary increases during negotiations.
NGU shall offer a flexible working arrangement including part-time, leaves, and flexible hours. Such arrangement shall not harm subsequent employment and promotion opportunities for employees who use them.
NGU's personnel and salary policy will be revised and renegotiated early in the action plan period.
3.2. Inclusion and diversity
As a government agency, NGU shall reflect the diversity of the population in terms of gender, age, functional ability, ethnic background, sexual orientation, etc. Diversity in NGU's workforce will help us achieve our goals and ensure that all citizens receive good service regardless of background and life experience.
We believe that inclusion and diversity are a strength.
We want employees with different competencies, professional experiences, life experiences and perspectives to encourage more creativity and problem-solving. Therefore, we will accommodate employees depending on their abilities and needs.
NGU's work with gender equality, inclusion and diversity is integral to the collaboration between the leadership and the union representatives. However, the whole organisation must contribute to diversity and inclusion efforts to succeed. Emphasis is placed on broad involvement in equality work by employees throughout the organisation through efforts such as, the information provided to new employees, intranet, strategic workshops, lectures and, last but not least, leadership training and coaching of top and middle leadership. Our ambition is to follow the Norwegian Standard for Diversity Management (NS11201) to the greatest possible extent.
3.3. Recruitment
NGU's recruitment process ensures basic requirements for fair and equal treatment of applicants and complies with government regulations. NGU's recruiting activities reflect the organisation's broad and inclusive approach.
NGU has a gender equality committee with two members, one female and one male, whom the employees' organisations appoint for 2 years. A committee member serves as an observer in NGU's hiring committee and shall ensure that NGU complies with gender equality regulations.
NGU aims to increase the proportion of women in the job categories where women are underrepresented (>40%). In this last period, women have not been under-represented in any of the three main job groups at NGU; specifically, leadership, researchers and engineers, and advisers. We have prepared a standardised declaration of diversity used in all our job announcements.
3.4. Management information
Since 1 January 2022, NGU has been a customer of the Norwegian Agency for Public and Financial Management (DFØ) and uses DFØ's joint solutions for accounting and payroll. Through the DFØ self-service portal, managers have access to Lederinnsikt (leader access portal), an access-controlled solution that provides leaders information related to their respective sections, such as time registration, claims vacation days, personnel and salary.
In addition, the system includes a separate gender equality analysis where the leaders can analyse gender-disaggregated data related to factors such as salary, education and sick leave.
4. Involvement with the plan
NGU's Department of Corporate Governance and ICT, through its director, held the responsibility of developing this organisation's action plan for gender equality. The director appointed a working group which included: The leader for health and safety, an HR adviser, the gender equality committee (2 employee representatives), a communications adviser and the director for Corporate Governance and ICT.
The working group conducted an internal assessment of existing documents that describe policy and routines to ensure that NGU meets the mandatory requirements and recommended topics for the action plan. In the assessment, we have placed particular emphasis on identifying gaps. After assessing existing documentation, the working group concluded that NGU meets the mandatory requirements but lacks a publicly available action plan for gender equality. With this current plan, NGU meets the European Commission's requirements for a gender equality plan (GEP) in Horizon Europe.
The working group recommends that in 2022 NGU should revise several internal management documents, clarify internal roles and responsibilities, and support training activities to meet all requirements for the activity and reporting obligation for gender equality and diversity in Norway.
5. Fakta og statistikk
This chapter includes facts and statistics on gender equality as of April 2022. Every year, NGU maps the differences between women and men regarding parental leave taken, work schedules and part-time employment. We also conduct statutory mapping annually to map differences between women and men concerning pay and gender balance at different position levels/job categories.
Data related to job groups
Table 1 shows the gender distribution for all employees in total and within each job category. As of 30 April 2022, NGU had 200 employees, of which 93 (46.5%) were women and 107 (53.5%) men. The job category 'manager' includes NGU's director, department directors and section leaders
| Position group | Woman | Men | Total | Proportion of woman |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Researchers | 44 | 65 | 109 | 40,4% |
| Engineers | 19 | 28 | 47 | 40,4% |
| Advisers, consultants, librarians | 20 | 8 | 28 | 71,4% |
| Leaders | 10 | 6 | 16 | 62,5% |
| SUM | 93 | 107 | 200 | 46,5% |
Data related to part-time work and temporary employees
5.1% of the employees work part-time after requesting a reduced position. No employees work part-time involuntarily. Compared to men, a considerably higher proportion of women work part-time. See Table 2.
| Part-time woman | Part-time men | Total part-time |
|---|---|---|
| 3,2% | 1,9% | 5,1% |
The proportion of temporary employees at NGU is 5.5%. There are a few more men than women who are temporarily employed. See Table 3.
| Temporary women | Temporary men | Temporary total |
|---|---|---|
| 2,5% | 3,0% | 5,5% |
Data related to recruitment
In 2021, almost twice as many men than women applied for jobs at NGU. However, among the recruits, the gender balance is good; 16 women and 15 men were employed during the year. Recruitment figures at the end of April 2022 show a similar trend. Table 4 shows the gender balance between applicants and newly recruited throughout 2021 until April 2022.
| Female applicants | Male applicants | Recruited women | Recruited men |
|---|---|---|---|
| 248 | 418 | 16 | 15 |
| 37% | 63% | 52% | 48% |
NGU needs to help reduce marginalisation and increase employment of those with disabilities and those who have been absent from work, education or training (holes in the CV). Therefore, we have standardised and fine-tuned the wording related to inclusion initiative goals in our recruitment process. Last year, some applicants indicated a disability or a gap in their CV.
Data on gender differences in pay
For NGU as a whole, the salary difference between women and men is 2.5%, calculated based on the average annual salary. However, if we look at the pay differences by job group, the most significant difference is among advisers, consultants and librarians, who are the group with the highest proportion of women.
Table 5Gender balance by job group, figures and percentage of annual salary.
| Position group | Women | Men | Women's salaries as a percentage of men's salaries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forskere | 44 | 65 | 95,4% |
| Ingeniører | 19 | 28 | 97,2% |
| Rådgivere, konsulenter, bibliotekarer | 20 | 8 | 89,3% |
| Ledere | 10 | 6 | 98,7% |
| SUM | 93 | 107 | 97,5% |
Nationality data
NGU has a rich diversity of employees from different parts of the world. As of April 2022, NGU has employees from 29 different nationalities.
Table 6 shows where our employees come from.
| Nationality | Number | Per cent |
|---|---|---|
| Norway | 129 | 64,5% |
| Europe (outside the Nordic region) | 48 | 24,0% |
| USA and Canada | 7 | 3,5% |
| Norden | 7 | 3,5% |
| Middle East | 3 | 1,5% |
| South America | 3 | 1,5% |
| Asia | 2 | 1,0% |
| Africa | 1 | 0,5% |
| SUM | 200 | 100% |
Bullying, harassment and unwanted sexual attention
At NGU, we have zero tolerance for harassment, and employees must be protected against violating personal dignity. No one should feel harassed in the workplace, and we must systematically and continuously work to ensure a safe and sound working environment. The employee survey conducted in 2021 includes questions on this topic. The following questions were asked in the employee survey:
•Have you directly been subjected to bullying or harassment in your workplace during the last six months?
•Have you noticed if anyone has been bullied or harassed in your workplace in the last six months?
•Have you directly been subjected to sexual harassment in the last 12 months at your workplace or places where your business has been gathered (parties, courses, etc.)?
•Have you observed sexual harassment in the last 12 months at your workplace or a place where your organisation has gathered (parties, courses, etc.)?
Of those who responded, approximately 6% reported that they had been subjected to bullying or harassment in the workplace during the last 6 months, and approximately 14% have noticed that someone has been exposed to this. However, nearly all reported that this happened infrequently or occasionally. Reporting on sexual harassment from the survey in 2021 shows that there have been some cases of sexual harassment. In total, 86% of all employees responded to the survey.
NGU has guidelines and procedures to:
• Ensure sound and reliable resolution of conflicts and cases of harassment or other improper conduct,
• Prevent, detect and stop conflicts, harassment or other inappropriate behaviour, and
• Lower the threshold for reporting harassment or other inappropriate behaviour.
The whistleblowing procedures and ethical guidelines are available in the quality system on the intranet. In addition, all new employees are informed about the guiding documents during their introduction to NGU.
Discrimination
In the employee survey in 2021, the following questions were asked about discrimination in the workplace:
•During the last 12 months, have you noticed a very different form of discrimination in your workplace?
•Discrimination I have noticed has occurred based on a) gender, b) age, c) pregnancy, c) maternity leave or adoption, d) care duties, e) religion, f) belief, g) disability, h) sexual orientation or i) gender identity or gender expression.
About 9% of those who responded to the survey reported noticing some form of discrimination. Of these, 7% dealt with discrimination based on gender, 3% age, 3% ethnicity and 2% based on leave at birth or adoption. No discrimination was reported based on disability or sexual orientation and some individual cases were based on the other causes.
Approximately 46% of those who responded to the survey fully or partially agreed with the statement that NGU works actively, purposefully and systematically to prevent discrimination. Only 9% completely or partially disagreed, while 45% answered neutrally.
Meassures for NGU in the period 2022-2024
6.1 About the implementation of the action plan
The action plan covers 2022-2024 and will be revised and adapted by the end of the period. During this period and in collaboration with the union representatives, we will revise and renegotiate several management documents at NGU that affect gender equality work. After the first year, we will therefore assess whether there is a need to revise the action plan earlier. The work with equality and diversity is an ongoing process.
6.2 The principles for internal gender equality work
The internal gender equality work must be seen in connection with the government's guidelines and NGU's overall ambitions in this area, as presented in NGU's strategic plan, NGU's personnel and salary policy and other relevant policy documents. As a government agency and in connection with societal mission, we must ensure consistency between our external activities and the internal conditions in the organisation on this topic.
6.3 Dedicated resources for gender equality work
The responsibility for following up on this action plan for gender equality lies with the employer and is delegated to the director of the Department of Corporate Governance and ICT. Up to 0.25 full-time equivalents will be set aside in the budget line for this activity. In general, work related to gender equality and diversity is a central task in the day-to-day management of NGU and personnel-related tasks.
NGU's leadership, the Working Environment Committee (arbeidsmiljø-utvalget - AMU) and the Gender equality committee (likestillingsutvalget) hold special responsibilities.
NGU's joint budget for competence funds can be used for relevant competence-building measures based on the action plan
6.4 Areas of focus and measures in the period 2022-2024
Table 7 provides an overview of priority measures in the action plan's period from 2022-2024.
| The focus area | Goal | Measures |
|---|---|---|
| Organisation | Strengthen organisational tools that facilitate equality, inclusion and diversity. | Revise personnel and payroll policy. Revise “tilpasningsavtale om medbestemmelse” Facilitate that more gender categories than men/women are included in our administrative systems. |
| Management | Clarify roles and responsibilities in gender equality work. | Establish a committee for equality, inclusion and diversity with representatives from the employer and employee who will ensure compliance with obligations, cf. the activity and reporting obligation (ARP). |
| Data collection | Systematic data collection, monitoring and reporting. | Establish routines for data collection according to requirements from Horizon Europe and ARP. Mapping, monitoring and reporting statistics on data related to gender equality. |
| Training | Increase knowledge about gender equality, inclusion and diversity in the organisation. | Courses for leaders and union representatives on responsibility in recruitment processes to increase knowledge about recruiting for diversity, and gender equality and discrimination. |
| Salary policy | Provide equal pay for equal work, regardless of gender or other differences. | Reduce the pay gap between women and men, especially in the position group of consultants, advisers and librarians. |
| Organisational culture | Combating prejudice and internalised discriminatory -actions Zero tolerance for - and prevention of - bullying, harassment and unwanted sexual attention. | Communicate NGU's values. Value-based leadership Clear and focused communication about equality and diversity. Hold courses and lectures on the topic. Raise awareness on the topic through group work and leadership courses. Continue monitoring through employee surveys. |
| Career development | Provide equal opportunities for career development, regardless of gender or other differences. | Provide information about different career paths. Prepare and use a strategic competence plan. Improve opportunities for internal mobility. Use employee interviews actively for career development. |