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Promoting equality in public administration: Case Finland

Panu Artemjeff, Senior Specialist, Ministry of the Interior, Legal Affairs Unit

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Background

• Finland has ratified the main international agreements relevant for fighting discrimination

• EU legislation that prohibits discrimination and EU Framework Strategy for Non-Discrimination and Equal Opportunities for All

• Finnish Constitution, Non-Discrimination Act and Gender Equality Act

• European programmes to counter-act discrimination• National programs to counter-act discrimination

(disability policy plan, national Roma policy, human rights policy program etc.)

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Who is responsible for the equality and non-discrimination policies in Finland?

• Special authorities: Omdusman for Minorities, Ombudsman for Gender Equality, Chancellor of Justice

• Ministries in their fields• Local and Regional Authorities• NGOs• Joint projects with public authorities and NGOs• Advisory boards (Roma, Sami, Minority etc.)• Same Parliament

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Equality Team

• Part of the Legal Affairs unit of Ministry of Interior• Main tasks: 1) Coordinates governmental equality policies2) Develops and facilitates equality duties especially

equality planning and equality impact assessment3) Implements national discrimination monitoring (action

plan 2010-2013)4) Coordinates national awareness raising activities to

tackle discrimination (EU Progress -programme)

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Equality planning

• Under the Non-Discrimination Act (21/2004), the authorities have a duty to foster equality purposefully and methodically in all they functions, and alter any circumstances that prevent the realization of equality

• The equality team gives recommendations, guidance and training on equality planning

• A guidebook on public sector equality planning was published 2010

• A guidebook on equality planning in NGO will be published 2011 and guidebook for educational institutions 2012

• Equality team has organized 30 training workshops around the country during 2008-2010. (including police, boarder guards, social and welfare personnel, defense forces, labour administration, education sector etc.)

• A study on quantity and quality of equality plans in 2009. Approx. 50% of authorities have a plan that meets the requirements

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Aims of the planning

• Improve equality in all functions of an public organization

• Developing following areas:

1) Skills to identify and tackle discrimination

2) Capacity to assess the impact of equality in functions, activities and practices

3) Implementation of positive action measures to promote equality

4) Promoting participation of minority groups

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The scope of the planning

• Law requires only one ground, ethnic origin. Ministry of Interior recommends that all grounds are taking into account.

• Both equality in workplace (internal) and equality in services (external) are treated in a single plan.

• Equality workshops deal also with following themes:1) Human rights requirements 2) Equality and good governance3) Participatory democracy4) Diversity management5) Group specific issues

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Equality plan: key factors

• Emphases on the process not on the document• A comprehensive equality impact analyses• Equality mainstreaming: finding relevance and

linkage to the core functions of organization• Involvement of the key stakeholders (staff,

management and groups at risk of discrimination)• Tools to measure equality (surveys, consultation

and complaint mechanisms) and follow up progress

• Transparency and visibility of the work

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Other measures to promote equality/ sector based activities

Ministry of Employment and Economy has launched a program to promote diversity management in business community.

- Publications on best practices on positive action, reasonable

accommodation and minority recruitment

- Launching of the Diversity Charter in 2012

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Other measures to promote equality/ Equality portal

www.equality.fi

Website that collects legislation, best practices, guidance for the equality planning, studies, reports etc. related to diversity, equality and non-discrimination issues.

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Other measures to promote equality/ awareness raising campaigns

Discrimination free zone - campaign

• Campaign challenges organizations to become discrimination free.

• Organizations must fill in the declaration and they will get the discrimination free zone -signs by post.

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Thank you