Diversity and Inclusion of the Scottish Government Workforce

The latest Scottish Government Workforce Diversity and Inclusion Information statistics have been published today by Scotland’s Chief Statistician. These statistics are based on data available as at 31 December 2021 and cover the diversity of core Scottish Government (SG Core) permanent staff and the experiences of different demographic groups.

The statistics show that:

• At the end of December 2021, the diversity of the Scottish Government workforce varied in comparison to Scotland’s working age population:
  • Female staff make up 56.2% of the Scottish Government workforce, compared to 50.8% of Scotland’s working age population (16 to 65).
  • The Scottish Government workforce aged between 16 and 29 years old make up 17.9% of the workforce, compared to 26% of Scotland’s working-age population (16 to 65); staff aged 60 years old or older make up 6.1% of the workforce, compared to 12% of Scotland’s working-age population (16 to 65).
  • Disabled staff make up 13.3% of the Scottish Government workforce, compared to 20.7% of Scotland’s working-age population (16 to 64).
  • Ethnic minority staff make up 3.5% of the Scottish Government workforce, compared to 5.8% of Scotland’s working-age population (16 to 64).
  • Staff belonging to a non-Christian religion make up 2.9% of the Scottish Government workforce, compared to 4.2% of Scotland’s working-age population (16 to 64).
  • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or any other sexual orientation not including straight/heterosexual staff make up 7.3% of the Scottish Government workforce, compared to 3.5% of the Scottish working-age population (16 to 64).

• According to the People Survey 2021 (the annual UK Civil Service employee engagement survey), the Scottish Government workforce results on Inclusion and Fair Treatment varied by demographic and diversity group:
  • Female and male staff feel included and that they are treated fairly to the same degree (87.7% vs 87.5%).
  • The experiences of staff vary across the age groups. Generally, younger staff report feeling more included than older staff.
  • Disabled staff are less likely to feel included and treated fairly (80.7%) than non-disabled staff (88.7%).
  • Ethnic minority staff are less likely to feel included and treated fairly (85.4%) than white staff (87.6%).
  • Christian staff are more likely to feel included and treated fairly (88.3%) than the average staff member (86.4%).
  • Straight / heterosexual staff are more likely to feel included and treated more fairly (87.8%) than staff with any other sexual orientation (85.3%).
  • Transgender staff are less likely to feel included and treated fairly (67.6%) than cisgender staff (87.8%).
  • Staff whose parents never worked are less likely to feel included treated fairly (81.2%) than staff from a high socio-economic background (88.5%).

Background

The figures released today were produced in accordance with professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

The full statistics.

The statistics presented in this report come from data from a number of internal sources. Under each demographic characteristic, the report is split into three sections (where data is available):

Workforce composition: these sections contain statistics on the changing workforce in the Scottish Government using management information. They are demographic characteristic breakdowns of: Occupational segregation of staff on 31 December 2021; Applications in 2021 at each stage of the recruitment process; and Staff joining and leaving the organisation in 2021.

Staff experiences: these sections contain statistics on additional management information measures for each demographic group. They are: Levels of absence by demographic group; Proportion of each demographic group achieving each performance marking; Proportion of promotion of each demographic group in 2021; Proportion of each demographic group on a temporary promotion; and Average pay by sex, disability status or ethnic group.

Workforce culture: these sections contain results from the Civil Service People Survey 2021 and are the following scores for each demographic group: Employee engagement score; Inclusion and fair treatment score; Proportion of respondents experiencing bullying and/or harassment; and Proportion of respondents experiencing discrimination.

Official statistics are produced by professionally independent statistical staff. More information on the standards of official statistics in Scotland.