Coronavirus (COVID-19) - prolonged home working for Scottish Government staff: equality impact assessment

Stage 4: Decision making and monitoring

Given the broad scope of the policy, we have separated this stage into two parts.

Part A summarises the findings and actions taken within the context of prolonged home working.

Part B summarises the findings and actions taken in respect of the safe and secure protocols in place for anyone accessing our buildings now or in future whilst preventative measures remain.

Part A: Prolonged home working

Identifying and establishing any required mitigating action

Have positive or negative impacts been identified for any of the equality groups?

Home working for extended periods of time can have both positive and negative impacts to varying degrees for most protected characteristics groups.

The impact on mental health requires careful consideration, particularly for people with underlying mental health issues where social isolation, as well as fear and uncertainty around Covid-19 can exacerbate previous heath concerns.

Home working does, however, help limit the risk of infection and better protect vulnerable individuals due to reduced socialisation with no need to travel to work or interact face-to-face with colleagues.

A lack of a collaborative physical environment does give rise to challenges for networking in the workplace and less opportunities for development, mentoring, coaching. This is particularly relevant for inexperienced staff or those early on in their careers where visibility and networking is perceived to be beneficial for career progression.

Whilst home working is seen as positive for many groups, particularly for some disabled colleagues and those who have been asked to shield, if the home working environment is not conducive to work then challenges remain. Configuring the home working environment to suit may be costly and unaffordable for lower-income colleagues.

Some groups may also have a higher prevalence of caring responsibilities and therefore balancing home working with caring for others can be difficult. This is particularly the case for women and older people.

Longer periods at home can mean greater abuse from unsupportive families or partners for many protected groups, contributing to increased stress or distress, and increased risk of abuse

However, home working can reduce the prevalence of discrimination and harassment from colleagues.

Digital home-working can also enable a more inclusive environment where colleagues are treated equally in the absence of ‘labelling’.

Is the policy directly or indirectly discriminatory under the Equality Act 2010^[9]?

Indirectly. The policy position to prolong home working applies to the majority of Scottish Government.

As we progress through Scotland’s Covid-19 Strategic Framework and more staff return to buildings these measures will continue to be reviewed in recognition of this EQIA.

If the policy is indirectly discriminatory, how is it justified under the relevant legislation?

The organisation has a duty of care to protect staff and not put them at unnecessary risk

If not justified, what mitigating action will be undertaken?

N/A

Describing how Equality Impact analysis has shaped the policy making process

The impact assessment recognises the wide and differing impacts that Covid-19 has on all individuals.

When a nationwide lockdown was announced on 23^rd March, Scottish Government buildings were closed and the organisation moved to support the majority (97%) of staff to work from home. A range of measures across the People, Workplace and Technology spaces were introduced to support this policy and mitigate it’s impact.

People

The importance of health and wellbeing support in the workplace has become even more visible during Covid-19. Although it applies to all, health issues are more prevalent in some protected characteristic groups. It is therefore important that adequate provision is in place to support colleagues better manage their mental and physical health and wellbeing, and controls designed to provide opportunities for early intervention where it may be required.

A range of measures have been introduced to support colleagues work safety and effectively from home,

1. Revised home working arrangements – http://saltire/my-workplace/attendance-and-flexi/flexible-working/Pages/Working-from-home-Covid-19.aspx?pageid=dc189269-7b1a-4dce-b34e-a264f46ae782

2. Guidance on homeworking while caring for others - http://saltire/my-workplace/attendance-and-flexi/flexible-working/Pages/Working-from-home-Covid-19.aspx?pageid=dc189269-7b1a-4dce-b34e-a264f46ae782

3. EAS factsheets on managing anxiety / mental health - http://saltire/my-workplace/Wellbeing-and-staff-support/Advice-and-wellbeing-support/Pages/Employee-Assistance-Service.aspx

4. Corporate Communications, key messages on managing well-being / directing colleagues to EAS

5. Increased resource to SG well-being counsellors

6. Well-being = ‘mindfulness moment’ blogs on Saltire - http://saltire/our-organisation/blogs/Pages/Beyond-words.aspx

7. Covid-19 guidance and support - http://saltire/my-workplace/communications-and-engagement/Resilience/Pages/Covid-19-guidance-and-support.aspx

8. Regular wellbeing conversations have been encouraged between colleagues and their managers - http://saltire/my-workplace/Wellbeing-and-staff-support/Mental-health/Pages/Mental-health-and-you.aspx

9. New learning offer to support professional and personal development, including the Mutual Mentoring Programme and virtual Future Leaders scheme

10. Staff in abusive home settings to be considered for potentially returning to buildings earlier.

11. Refreshing our Trans equality and Inclusion Policy, to contribute to building a supportive environment for trans colleagues.

Workplace

1. Guidance on how to create a comfortable and healthy working environment - http://saltire/my-workplace/attendance-and-flexi/flexible-working/Pages/Working-from-home-coronavirus.aspx?pageid=1b7d52ec-32e0-4072-b496-3071bb64df66

2. Home working equipment provision to allow staff to order and take delivery of essential equipment.

3. Additional specialised equipment delivered to those that need it.

4. Public Health Scotland will join a new expert group working with the Scottish Government to provide a clearer picture of how minority ethnic communities in Scotland are affected by Covid-19. Their findings will be used to identify further measures that may protect minority ethnic groups.

Technology

1. Increase to the number of concurrent users to provide access for up to 20,000 remote users

2. Enhanced communication tools, including video conferencing which may alleviate some feelings of anxiety and isolation - http://saltire/my-workplace/meetings/Audio-and-video-conferencing/Pages/Using-conferencing-tools.aspx

3. Early introduction of Microsoft Teams to better support collaborative working and engagement with colleagues and plans expedited for the introduction of Office 365.

Part B: Safe and secure building protocols

The changes to our buildings will impact anyone who has a need to enter a Scottish Government building, for work or any other reason.

Identifying and establishing any required mitigating action

Have positive or negative impacts been identified for any of the equality groups?

When buildings do re-open, care will be needed to ensure that the safe and secure protocols put in place do not discriminate. This includes consideration of infrastructure measures and changes, as well as decisions about how any return will be managed.

Is the policy directly or indirectly discriminatory under the Equality Act 2010^[10]?

Indirectly. Whilst a small number of staff have continued to work in St Andrews House, the majority have been working from home since early 2020. As buildings re-open, more staff will begin to return to the office.

As we progress through Scotland’s Covid-19 Strategic Framework and more staff return to buildings these measures will continue to be reviewed in recognition of this EQIA.

If the policy is indirectly discriminatory, how is it justified under the relevant legislation?

The organisation has a duty of care to protect staff and not put them at unnecessary risk

If not justified, what mitigating action will be undertaken?

N/A

Describing how Equality Impact analysis has shaped the policy making process

As we return to offices, care must be taken to help ensure that the decisions we take are cognisant of the findings presented here and of the importance of creating an inclusive culture at Scottish Government.

Some of the actions already being taken are included below.

People

The importance of health and wellbeing support in the workplace will continue to be a priority as we look to returning to buildings.

1. Wellbeing conversations with line managers will be required as part of preparations for any return and wellbeing forms will guide the conversation and capture actions, supported by the use of the Covid-19 occupational risk assessment form. Where additional HR support or workplace adjustments are required, professional support will be provided through the HR People Advice and Wellbeing Team.

2. A return to buildings induction pack will help provide reassurance that buildings are safe and take people through the changes that have been made prior to any actual return.

3. Hybrid working guidance for both employees and managers will be developed to enable more flexibility in the future on where work can take place.

4. A review of core content material is being taken forward by Learning and Development colleagues and, as part of this, consideration will be given into how to support hybrid working, both in supporting managers and staff, but also in the delivery mechanisms that we use.

5. Learning and Development colleagues are working closely with colleagues across Scottish Government to support those staff new into the organisation who have never visited one of our buildings due to being on-boarded during the pandemic.

Workplace

1. Redesign of our workplaces in collaboration with the Diversity and Inclusion team and Trade Unions to seek to ensure the measures being put in place are suitable for all colleagues

2. A full suite of Covid-19-safe protocols for all of our buildings has been prepared to highlight the new arrangements that are in place across the estate, to include e.g. one-way signage, how to access and move around the building, open facilities and spaces, etc. These will be tested with volunteers from the Disabled Staff Network.

3. To help reduce anxiety about returning, a package of induction material will help staff familiarise themselves with the changes that are in place and the support available, as well as their responsibilities to protect themselves and colleagues.

Technology

1. Testing of new space management solutions to support the safe booking of work spaces, ensuring the preferred supplier can meet required accessibility

2. Introduction of new accessible meeting room technology to improve collaborative working

Monitoring and Review

This impact assessment has highlighted the impacts that Covid-19 can have on Scottish Government staff of protected characteristic groups. These findings have informed the decisions taken by the Corporate Recovery Programme throughout our corporate response to the pandemic and other business areas in supporting staff to work from home and in the planning for the re-opening of Scottish Government buildings.