Equality, diversity and inclusion annual report 2024

We monitor the characteristics of our workforce to:

• identify trends within employment practices
• investigate trends 
• implement change where appropriate

It also enables us to fulfil our commitment to:

• ensure employment practices are free from discrimination
• meet our obligations under the Equality Act 2010

The provision of personal diversity information within the council is voluntary. Employees have the option of choosing not to share this information. The personnel system can be accessed on a self-serve basis. This allows employees to manage and amend their personal information. We encourage employees to provide this information as it helps us to improve how we support colleagues with different characteristics.

Where an employee has chosen not to share ethnicity, disability, religion or belief or sexual orientation, this is shown on the workforce profile as 'unknown'. When employees choose not to share their personal diversity information, this can affect our ability to meaningfully report and benchmark monitoring information.  

Additional data is also provided on:

• recruitment process
• pay and the gender pay gap
• discipline, grievance and capability processes
• turnover and leaver data

At the reporting date of 31 March 2024, there are 5,727 employees (excluding schools). 

We have compared our workforce data to:

• the same period in 2022 and 2023
• 2021 census data

This allows us to assess:

• if the composition of our workforce has changed
• whether it is reflective of the local community

The workforce profile differs within each part of the organisation depending on the roles undertaken and the purpose of the services. This report provides a summary across the council.

Where employee numbers are below 5, the detail will not be provided in this report to protect the anonymity of individual employees. In these cases it will state ‘fewer than 5’.  Where possible there will be an indication of whether the percentage is above or below the workforce percentage of that characteristic.

Age

Age profile of workforce

Over the last three years there has been little change in the age profile of the organisation with the greatest increase in the 40 to 44 age group and the greatest decrease in the 50 to 54 age group.  Although there has been an increase in the number of employees under the age of 19, this figure remains below 1% of the organisation.

As an ‘age friendly’ employer and part of the national ‘Ageing better’ programme, we aim to provide fulfilling work to people aged 50 and over.  We have reviewed the workforce data and employee survey responses from those aged 50 and over to show the current experience of employees in this age group and to understand whether they can access fulfilling work at Lincolnshire County Council.

• the percentage of employees aged 50 and above is 38.6% (2,209)
• in Lincolnshire, people aged 50 and over form 45% (343,670) of the population
• 41.5% (916) of employees aged 50 and over work part-time compared with 31.6 (1,111) of employees under 50

Pay

For details of the pay rates please refer to the pay policy statement.

At G15 equivalent and above the greatest proportion of employees in an age group switches from under to over fifty.

Recruitment

Applicants over 50 are 1.2 times more likely to be shortlisted than an applicant aged between 25 to 49 however once shortlisted both groups are equally likely to be appointed.

Apprenticeships

There were 279 live apprenticeships in 2023 to 2024, an increase of 13 from 2022 to 2023.

Internally and externally provided apprenticeships are available to staff of any age. They can support development up to level 7 (equivalent to a master’s degree).

• 21.9% of apprenticeships (61) were undertaken by employees under the age of 25, who were around four times more likely to undertake an apprenticeship than older staff. Several of the courses offered support the development of administration and customer service skills for individuals who are leaving education or early in their careers.
• 11.1% (31) were undertaken by employees aged 50 and over. Although this is not representative of the number of employees in this age group (38.5%) it shows that individuals are supported to continue their development through apprenticeships, regardless of their age. 

Employee Survey

The figures and percentages can be found in the employee survey section.

Respondents aged 50 and over were:

• 36% (951) of all respondents
• less likely to say they have a fair opportunity to progress in their career, 2.2 percentage points lower than all respondents.  This has improved by 2.4 percentage points since the 2021 survey
• more likely in 2023 to say that they have opportunities to use strengths and talents in their role, this has improved by 4 percentage points since the 2021 survey
• more likely to say that LCC takes a pro-active approach to support wellbeing, 6.3 percentage points higher than all respondents
• most likely to have effective and regular meetings with their manager, 2.7 percentage points higher than all respondents

When asked whether they experience abuse at work, 11.9% (113) survey respondents aged 50 and over said they had experienced harassment, bullying or abuse from the public or people using our services, and 6.2% (59) said they had experienced harassment, bullying or abuse from colleagues or managers.

Age leavers 24 and under

Total percentage of employees aged 24 and under at 31 March 2024: 5.0% (285)

Age leavers 25 to 49

Total percentage of employees aged 25 to 49 at 31 March 2024: 56.5% (3,233)

Age leavers 50 and over

Total percentage of employees aged 50 and over at 31 March 2024: 38.6% (2,209)

Total leavers:

• 2021 to 2022 - 100% (655)
• 2022 to 2023 - 100% (677)
• 2023 to 2024 - 100% (568)

There has been an overall decrease in the number of leavers over the last three years.

There has been an increase in the number of resignations from employees aged 50 and above.

The data shows that employees aged 24 and under were more likely to be dismissed than other age groups, this is mainly due to the end of temporary contracts.

Disability

The number of employees sharing that they have a disability has increased year on year.

The percentage of employees whose disability status is continuing to decrease. Through the introduction and embedding of the new values we hope to encourage more staff to feel confident about disclosing that they have a disability, with the aim of reducing still further the proportion whose status is unknown.

We have committed to the Disability Confident Scheme and have also been accredited as a Disability Confident employer. We also reference this in our recruitment and take action on the following commitment to:

• ensure the recruitment process is inclusive and accessible
• communicate and promote vacancies
• offer an interview to disabled people if they meet the minimum criteria for the post
• anticipate and provide reasonable adjustments as required when disabled employees are applying for and doing their jobs

Disability profile of the workforce

• 7.0% (398) employees have shared that they have a disability.
• 21.1% (1,208) employees have not shared their disability status.

The following information shows the number of employees with each type of disability where this has been shared, one person may have more than one disability.  Neurodiversity is a new disability type added to the recording options in 2024.

Pay

This year the disability pay gap of employees has been calculated for the second time. Employee records were not included where disability status is unknown, therefore  4306 employees were in scope for the disability pay gap calculations.  Of these employees 3916 ( 90.9%) have no disability and 390 (9.1%) of the employees have a disability.

• the 2023 disability pay gap:
  • the mean hourly rate for employees with no disability is £18.66 and for employees with a disability is £17.49
  • the mean disability pay gap is 6.25%
  • the median hourly rate for employees with no disability is £17.10 and for employees with a disability is £16.23
  • the median disability pay gap is 5.1%
  • the latest UK median disability pay gap reported by the ONS is 13.8% for 2021

Disability pay gap quartile bands

The disability pay gap has improved in the last year with median figure reducing by 2%. There has been an increase of approximately three percentage points of people with a disability across all quartiles. This will have been improved by more employees adding their disability status to their employment record. There is also now a similar percentage of people with a disability in both the lower and lower middle pay quartiles.

Pay grades

For details of the pay rates please refer to the pay policy statement.

• In the above table, where numbers are lower than 5, the percentage is given as either greater than or less than 6.9% as this is the organisational percentage for employees with a disability and shows whether the representation in the grade is proportionate or not.
• 97% (386) of employees who have shared that they have a disability (398) are on grades G1 to G12 or equivalent salary.  This is 7.1% of employees on grades G1 to G12 or equivalent salary levels (5,414)
• There are 12 employees in senior roles paid at G13 or equivalent and above which is 3.8% of the number of employees paid at this level (313). Although this is an increase from 2023, there would need to be 22 employees with disabilities in senior roles to match the percentage of employees with disabilities on the lower grades (7.1%)

The distribution of staff across the various pay bands still suggests that it is more difficult for someone with a disability to secure a role at a more senior level than it is for someone without a disability.

Recruitment

• There has been a similar percentage of applicants and interviewees (increase within 1%) with disabilities as in 2023 with an increase of 1% (17) in the number of successful applicants with disabilities. 
• A disabled applicant was 1.1 times more likely to be shortlisted than a non-disabled applicant. This has remained stable over the last two years.  As a Disability Confident employer, applicants with a disability are guaranteed an interview if they meet the minimum criteria for the role.
• A non-disabled shortlisted applicant was 1.3 times more likely to be successful in the recruitment process.  This has reduced from 1.4 times more likely in 2023.

As the proportion of successful applicants recruited to the council who have a declared disability (9.8%) remains greater than the proportion of current staff with a disability (6.9%), it seems likely that the proportion of all staff with a reported disability will continue to increase.

Apprenticeships

• 9.3 % of employees (26) on apprenticeship programmes (total 279) had a disability.  This is a 3% increase from 2023 and above the percentage of employees with a disability across the workforce.
• an employee with a disability is 1.1 times more likely to be on an apprenticeship than someone who does not have a disability

Formal HR processes

• There were 42 formal disciplinary cases in 2023- 2024 and fewer than 5 cases related to people with a disability.  The figures are in line with the proportion of employees with disabilities in the workforce.
• There were 21 formal grievance cases in 2023 to 2024 which is the same as the previous year. The percentage of cases raised by employees with a disability was 19.1%, which is greater than the proportion of employees with disabilities in the workforce (6.9%) and an increase in the percentage of cases from 2023 (9.5%).
• The grievances raised by employees with a disability related to bullying and harassment and work relations.
• There were 13 formal capability cases. The percentage of cases relating to employees with a disability was 15.4% which is greater than the proportion of employees with disabilities in the workforce (6.9%) and has reduced from the previous year (20.0%)
• Given the small number of formal cases, a single additional case can cause a large shift in the percentage rates.

Employee Survey

The figures and percentages can be found in the Employee survey section.

• 88.3% (2,316) of respondents provided their disability status. answered the question which asked whether they had a disability or health condition.  The remaining respondents selected ‘prefer not to say’.
• 15.6% (409) of all respondents stated that they have a disability or health condition.
• Respondents who stated they have a disability :
  • less positive about their opportunity to use their strengths and talents in their role 5.7 percentage points lower compared to all respondents
  • less positive about recognition of their hard work and success 5.3 percentage points lower compared to all respondents
  • less positive about their ability to maintain a good level of resilience and wellbeing 14.6 percentage points lower compared to all respondents. This has improved by 6.4 percentage points since the 2021 survey
• When asked if they have experienced any harassment, bullying or abuse from colleagues at work in the last year, 12.7% (52) disabled respondents answered yes. Disabled respondents were twice as likely as non-disabled respondents to answer yes.
• When asked if they have experienced any harassment, bullying or abuse from people using our services, their relatives or the public in the last year, 21.0% (86) disabled respondents answered yes. Disabled respondents were twice as likely as non-disabled respondents to answer yes.

Leavers

Employees at 31 March 2024: 6.9% (398)

• The data suggests that someone with a disability was less likely to leave the organisation voluntarily than other employees.
• Someone with a disability was twice as likely to be dismissed as other employees, though this figure needs to be treated with care due to the very small numbers involved, as an individual case can shift the percentages significantly
• This includes ill health dismissals which may lead to early access to pension benefits.

The high proportion of employees (21.1%) who have not shared their disability status is likely to have had an impact of the statistics of the pay comparison and the formal HR process reporting.

Carers

There are a number of employees who are indirectly affected by disability as they are carers for family or friends outside of work. As part of the employee survey, respondents were asked if they are a carer. The responses have been analysed to understand the experience of these individuals.

The figures and percentages can be found in the employee survey section.

• There were 581 individuals who stated they are a carer.  Carers’ responses were similar to those of individuals with a disability. In addition carers were:
  • least likely to say they achieve a good balance between work life and home life, 6.7 percentage points lower compared to all respondents
  • least likely to say that LCC culture fosters a compassionate, supportive and inclusive work environment, 4.2 percentage points lower compared to all respondents
  • least likely to feel comfortable contributing ideas and opinions, 4.9 percentage points lower compared to all respondents  
• Carers were more likely to experience abuse from the public (2.4 percentage points more) and from colleagues (2.7 percentage points more) when compared to all respondents.

Carers are also likely to fall into one or more of the protected characteristic groups.

Ethnicity

The ethnicity categories for statistics purposes are regularly reviewed by many organisations with recent guidance published by the government in December 2021 .

For the purpose of this report ethnicities are grouped into the following categories or will be listed using each subcategory heading. This is to take account of the small numbers recorded under each ethnicity and to improve the reliability of the statistics.

Ethnic minorities (excluding white minorities)

• Asian: Bangladeshi, Chinese, Indian, Pakistani, Asian other
• Black: African, Caribbean, Black Other
• Mixed: White and Asian, White and Black African, White and Black Caribbean, Mixed Other
• Other: Arab, Any other ethnic group

White and white minorities

White:

• British
• Gypsy
• Roma or Irish Traveller
• Irish
• white other
• white not specified

Where ‘white minorities’ is stated, this includes the groups described above not including white British.

Ethnicity profile of the workforce

• 3.4% (193) of employees are from ethnic minority backgrounds (excluding white minorities)
• 3.3% (191) of employees are from white minority backgrounds
• 90.2% (5,167) of employees are white British

The number of employees who are from ethnic minority backgrounds (excluding white minorities) has increased each year. The 2024 percentage (3.4%) is within 0.6% of the Lincolnshire population figure from the 2021 census (4%). Our employment of individuals from white minority backgrounds and Asian and mixed ethnic backgrounds are below the census figures, however the percentage of employees from a Black ethnic background (1.2%) has risen above the census figure (0.6%) in 2024.

There has been a decrease year on year in the number of employees whose ethnicity is unknown.

Pay

The ethnicity pay gap of employees has been calculated for the second time. The calculations were in line with the gender pay gap criteria and 5,465 employees were in scope. Of these employees 5,283 (96.7%) were from white backgrounds or their ethnicity was unknown. 182 (3.3%) of the employees were from ethnic minority backgrounds.

• The 2024 ethnicity pay gap:
  • the mean hourly rate for employees from white backgrounds or where ethnicity is unknown is £18.87 and for employees from ethnic minority backgrounds is £18.33
  • the mean ethnicity pay gap is 2.9%
  • the median hourly rate for employees from white backgrounds or where ethnicity is unknown is £17.10 and for employees from ethnic minority backgrounds is £17.10
  • the median ethnicity pay gap is 0.0%

Ethnicity pay gap quartile bands

The median ethnicity pay gap has remained the same as 2023, however the mean figure has increased as the average hourly rate for an employee from an ethnic minority background is lower than the rate for all other employees.  This does not show an equal pay issue as the council job evaluation system allocates grades based on work of equal value, however the quartile information shows that there are fewer employees from an ethnic minority background in the upper quartile.

Pay grades

• In the above table, where numbers are lower than 5, the percentage is given as either greater than or less than 3.4% as this is the organisational percentage for employees from ethnic minority backgrounds and shows whether the representation in the grade is proportionate or not.
• 97.4% (189) of employees from ethnic minority backgrounds (194) are on grades G1 to G12 or equivalent salaries. This is 3.5% of the number of employees paid at this level (5,223). 
• There are 5 employees from ethnic minority backgrounds in senior roles paid at  G13 or equivalent and above. This is the same as in 2023 and is 1.6% of the number of employees paid at this level (313).  This is below the percentage of ethnic minority employees in the workforce (3.4%).

Recruitment

• 16.1% of applicants were from an ethnic minority minority background, this increased from 12.5% in the previous year.
• 5.2% of successful applicants were from an ethnic minority minority background, this increased from 4.8% in the previous year.
• An applicant who is white or other white minority ethnicity is 1.8 times more likely to be shortlisted than an applicant from an ethnic minority background.
• A shortlisted applicant from a white or other white minority ethnicity is 2 times more likely to be successful in the recruitment process than a shortlisted applicant from an ethnic minority background (1.6 times in 2023).
• A shortlisted white British applicant is 1.1 times as likely to be successful than a shortlisted applicant from a white minority ethnicity.

Apprenticeships

The number of employees on apprenticeship programmes is 4.9% of the workforce and the number apprentices as a proportion of the number of employees from ethnic minority backgrounds is within 0.3% of this figure.  It is therefore just as likely for someone from an ethnic minority background to be undertaking an apprenticeship. This is an improvement on 2023 when the percentage of apprentices from an ethnic minority background was 2.5% (7).

Formal HR processes

• There were 42 formal disciplinary cases in total and fewer than 5 cases involving employees from an ethnic minority background. The percentage is above the organisation’s percentage of employees from an ethnic minority background (3.4%).
• There were 21 formal grievances cases in total and fewer than 5 cases were raised by employees from ethnic minority backgrounds.  The percentage is above the organisation’s percentage of employees from an ethnic minority background (3.4%).
• There were 13 formal capability cases in total and none of these involved employees from an ethnic minority background.
• Given the small number of formal cases, a single additional case can cause a large shift in the percentage rates.

Employee Survey

The figures and percentages can be found in the employee survey section.

• 2.0% (52) of all respondents (2623) identified themselves as being from an ethnic minority background (not including white minorities). This is less than half than in the 2021 survey.
• Respondents from an ethnic minority background were:
  • more positive when compared to all respondents across 21 of the 28 questions in the survey
  • less comfortable contributing ideas and opinions, 10.2 percentage points lower compared to all respondents
  • less positive about their opportunity to use their strengths and talents in their role, 8.3 percentage points lower compared to all respondents
  • most likely to say that LCC fosters a compassionate, supportive and inclusive work environment 12.4 percentage points higher compared to all respondents
• When asked if they have experienced any harassment, bullying or abuse from colleagues at work in the last year, 6.9% (less than 5) of respondents from an ethnic minority background answered yes which is the same as the 6.9% (181) of all respondents so were just as likely to experience poor behaviours from colleagues
• When asked if they have experienced any harassment, bullying or abuse from people using our services, their relatives or the public in the last year, 10.9% (5) of respondents from an ethnic minority background answered yes compared to 11.9% (313) of all respondents so were less likely to experience poor behaviours from the public.

Leavers

• Employees from ethnic minority backgrounds (excluding white minorities) were 1.5 times more likely to resign than those from white ethnicities.
• Employees from ethnic minorities were 3.1 times more likely to be dismissed.  This has increased from 2023 when employees from ethnic minorities were 1.4 times more likely to be dismissed. Dismissals include the end of temporary and fixed term contracts. 
• 3.2% (16) of leavers (567) were from white minority backgrounds.
• When compared to white British employees, employees from other white backgrounds were 0.5 times less likely to be dismissed and just as likely to resign