Argyll and Bute Equality Mainstreaming Report 2023 and Equal Pay Audit
Argyll and Bute Council · 11 May 2023
Back to Policy and Resources Committee — 11 May 2023 and its agenda
Text extracted from the council's PDF. Layout and reading order may differ from the original.
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ARGYLL AND BUTE COUNCIL POLICY AND RESOURCES COMMITTEE CUSTOMER SUPPORT SERVICES 11 MAY 2023 ARGYLL AND BUTE EQUALITY MAINSTREAMING REPORT 2023 AND EQUAL PAY AUDIT 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 As part of equalities duties set out in the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED), the Council, Education Authority, and Licensing Board are required to report on their equality mainstreaming activities every two years. 1.2 The Equality Mainstreaming Report 2023, which covers the period 2021-2023, is appended to this covering report. The Mainstreaming Report covers the three authorities mentioned above. 1.3 As required by the PSED, we commissioned an Equal Pay Audit in 2022. This report sets out the key findings of the audit which will be published alongside the mainstreaming report. 2.0 RECOMMENDATIONS It is recommended that the Policy and Resources Committee (a) Approves the Equality Mainstreaming Report and (b) Notes the findings of the Equal Pay Audit, which has been carried out as part of our duties under equality legislation. 3.0 DETAIL 3.1 The Equality Mainstreaming Report (Appendix 1) has been produced to meet the requirements of the PSED. The Mainstreaming Report sets out how we have mainstreamed equalities into our everyday work and how we have progressed in meeting our current equalities outcomes. We will consult on future outcomes later in the year. 3.2 We are obligated to publish the Mainstreaming Report. We request the committee to approve the Mainstreaming Report to enable the publication of the approved version. The Mainstreaming Report will be published alongside workforce data and our Equal Pay Audit.
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3.3 As required by the Public Sector Equality Duty, we have recently commissioned an Equal Pay Audit (EPA). The audit, carried out by Zellis Reward Consultancy Services, was based on the workforce as of October 2022. The audit explores gender pay gaps, where these manifest within the organisation, and why. 3.4 The audit’s findings provide assurances that our processes and practices around pay and grading are robust with pay gaps arising from structural factors within the wider labour market. Because a higher percentage of the male workforce are in higher grades compared to the female workforce, males have a higher average hourly rate overall. This pattern is reflected in the organisation’s pay gap figures (table 1). Table 1: Gender pay gaps including and excluding casuals (from Equal Pay Audit 2022) Summary – Gender Pay Gaps – Basic Pay Group Total Workforce (Inc. Casuals) Total Workforce (Excl. Casuals) Mean Median Mean Median All Employees 9.05% 8.29% 4.81% 1.57% 3.5 Despite the assurances, the audit has made a series of recommendations for our consideration. The Equal Pay Audit is available via the hyperlink. 4.0 CONCLUSION 4.1 The committee is asked to approve the Equality Mainstreaming Report. 5.0 IMPLICATIONS 5.1 Policy: There are no policy implications arising directly from this report. 5.2 Financial: There are no financial implications arising directly from this report. 5.3 Legal: The production and publication of the Equality Mainstreaming Report and the Equal Pay Audit are required as part of the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED). 5.4 HR: There are no HR implications arising directly arising from this report. Note, however, that workforce reporting and profiling are required and have been completed as per the requirements of the PSED. 5.5 Fairer Scotland Duty:
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5.5.1 Equalities - protected characteristics: The Equality Mainstreaming Report has been produced to fulfil the requirements set out in the PSED. 5.5.2 Socio-economic Duty: No issues relating specifically to our socio- economic duties are arising from this report. 5.5.3 Islands: No issues relating to island are arising from this report. 5.6 Climate Change: No climate change implications are arising from this report. 5.7 Risk: No risk implications arising directly from this report. 5.8 Customer Service: No customer service implications arising directly from this report. Kirsty Flanagan Executive Director with responsibility for Customer Support Services Policy Lead for Economic Growth, Communities and Corporate Services: Councillor Alistair Redman Report prepared: 6 April 2023 For further information contact: Jane Fowler, Head of Customer Support Services. Jane.Fowler@argyll-bute.gov.uk APPENDICES Appendix 1: Equality Mainstreaming Report 2023