Scottish Government workforce diversity and inclusion statistics 2025
Statistics on the diversity of core Scottish Government permanent staff and the experiences of different demographic groups within the workforce.
Ethnic group - Scottish Government
The data below cover staff working in core Scottish Government directorate generals, selected agencies and selected non-ministerial departments. Data covering staff in core Scottish Government directorate generals only are also available. More details can be found in the notes page of this publication.
Declaration rates for ethnic group are 79.4% in our internal HR system, 85.8% in our recruitment system, and 99.3% in the People Survey.
The “minority ethnic” category below consists of the Mixed or Multiple Ethnic Group; Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British; African, African Scottish or African British; Caribbean or Black; and Other Ethnic Group categories.
Workforce composition
Staff who haven’t declared their ethnic group are not included in the percentages below.
Headcounts
Minority ethnic staff make up 5.7% of the Scottish Government workforce, compared with 7.7% of Scotland’s population aged 16 to 64 who are minority ethnic.
The chart below shows the breakdown of the Scottish Government workforce by ethnic group and by UK Civil Service pay band or working pattern (i.e. full-time or part-time). Percentages may include up (↑) or down (↓) arrows where data are significantly higher or lower than the overall Scottish Government representation. The ethnic group breakdown of Scotland’s population aged 16 to 64 is included as a comparison where available.
A table in the supplementary dataset also shows the breakdown for each Scottish Government agency, Director General area, or other body covered by this publication.
Figure 5a: Pay band or working pattern, by ethnic group - December 2025
Part-time staff make up 16.6% of all permanent staff.
Recruitment
36% of applications come from minority ethnic applicants, dropping to 16.3% of applicants accepting an offer.
The chart below shows the percentage breakdown of applicants by ethnic group at each stage of the recruitment process. Applicants applying to multiple jobs are included once for each application they submit. The ethnic group breakdown of Scotland’s population aged 16 to 64 is included as a comparison where available.
Figure 5b: Recruitment stages reached in 2025, by ethnic group
The stages of the recruitment process are explained in the notes page of this publication.
Turnover
Minority ethnic staff account for 16.5% of joiners and 5% of leavers.
The chart below shows the breakdown of the Scottish Government workforce, staff who joined in 2025 and staff who left in 2025 by ethnic group. Percentages may include up (↑) or down (↓) arrows where the proportions of joiners or leavers are significantly higher or lower than the overall Scottish Government representation. The ethnic group breakdown of Scotland’s working-age population is included as a comparison where available.
Figure 5c: Joiners and leavers in 2025, by ethnic group
The chart above does not include any movement to, from, or between any other Scottish Government organisations.
There is a higher rate of uncertainty in the breakdown of joiners, as the declaration rate of ethnic group among staff increases with time spent working for the Scottish Government.
Staff experiences
Figures for staff who haven’t declared their ethnic group are not included in the charts below, although they are included in the total figures.
Absences
Minority ethnic staff lost an average of 9.3 working days to sickness absences.
White staff lost an average of 9 working days to sickness absences.
AWDL is a measure of absence levels that allows for comparison between different groups. A higher AWDL indicates a higher rate of days absent relative to the number of staff in that group and their working pattern.
Figure 5d: Average working days lost in 2025, by ethnic group
Performance
41.7% of minority ethnic staff received a marking of ‘Highly Effective’ or ‘Exceptional’ in 2025.
57.1% of white staff received a marking of ‘Highly Effective’ or ‘Exceptional’ in 2025.
Performance is assessed annually in April. Percentages may include up (↑) or down (↓) arrows where a significantly higher or lower proportion of a group received that marking than the proportion among all staff. The overall staff proportions include staff who have not made a declaration.
Figure 5e: Performance markings in 2024-25, by ethnic group
Substantive promotions
6.4% of minority ethnic staff were promoted in 2025.
4.8% of white staff were promoted in 2025.
The chart below shows the percentage breakdown of staff promoted in 2025 by ethnic group. The percentages below are not the success rates of staff who applied for promotion. Percentages may include up (↑) or down (↓) arrows to indicate figures that are significantly higher or lower than the staff average. The staff average includes staff who have not made a declaration.
Figure 5f: Proportion of staff promoted in 2025, by ethnic group
The “not promoted” group includes the following staff:
- Staff who were unsuccessful in their application for a promotion in 2025.
- Staff who did not apply for a promotion in 2025.
- Staff who achieved a promotion in 2025 but did not start their new position until 2026.
Temporary promotions
3.3% of minority ethnic staff were on a temporary promotion.
4% of white staff were on a temporary promotion.
The chart below shows the proportion of Scottish Government staff on a temporary promotion. Percentages may include up (↑) or down (↓) arrows where proportions of staff on a temporary promotion are significantly higher or lower than the overall proportion within the Scottish Government. The overall proportion includes staff who have not made a declaration.
Figure 5g: Proportion of staff on a temporary promotion on 31 December 2025, by ethnic group
Pay gap
The data below represent the average salary for all staff in the SG Main, SG Marine and SCS pay groups.
The mean pay gap between minority ethnic and white staff on 31 December 2025 is 11.07%.
The median pay gap between minority ethnic and white staff on 31 December 2025 is 9.29%.
A positive pay gap indicates that white staff have a pay lead (i.e. have higher average pay).
The chart below shows the mean and median pay for staff on 31 December 2025 by ethnic group. The data below exclude staff who have not made a declaration in our HR system.
Figure 5h: Average pay on 31 December 2025, by ethnic group
Workforce culture
Workforce culture data used in this publication come from the Civil Service People Survey and cover core Scottish Government (SG Core) staff only. These data can be found on the SG Core page.