Dear All,

From time to time I get certain issues, pertinent to the RRAA, raised by
colleagues within our sector and because I feel that it might be beneficial
to others, I will be anonymising them and putting them out, including my
advice. Please feel free to come back to me at any time, with comments
and/or suggestions. In this way, we can work together in adding to our
information base.

Please find below, the latest issue raised and the answer given.
I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards.
Mannie.



Hello Manny

Welcome back from your well earned holiday!

I have a query regarding religious affinity. In the CRE ethnic monitoring
guidelines (page 8) it states that when monitoring service provision, it
might be useful to ask extra questions with regards to religion etc.

However it makes it clear that we should not ask questions relating to
religion or refugee status in connection with employment.

As part of EO monitoring we would like to ask a voluntary question on
religion at application for study stage with regards to students. Would the
advice be the same for students as it is for employment i.e. do not ask the
question at this stage.

Regards,



Dear ,

Thanks for your kind words, it is nice to be back because I did miss you
all!!!!

Regarding your query, my advice would be ...

Please ask your students and/or employees, as many questions as you could
possibly ask (within certain parameters of course) because the more you
establish the needs of your students and/or employees, the more likely you,
as a service provider and an employer who is constantly working to adopt and
implement best practice, are likely to get it as right as possible.

You will however need to always remember though that the more questions you
ask the more you have to enable your staff, who are responsible for
monitoring, to perform this important task in an appropriate manner, through
adequate training that is provided by a relatively qualified trainer.
Otherwise it will not work if staff are not confident enough to adequately
explain why you are asking certain questions.

We also have to always remember that we are dealing with very sensitive
issues and feelings, around this area. Some students and staff, especially
those from Minority Ethnic backgrounds, have and/or know of someone who has,
been through very negative experiences based on personal information they
have divulged. Others, including staff who are monitoring, might feel it is
none of the institution's business to know this information, until they are
correctly informed of course. There is also the Data Protection Act to
contend with. All those involved will therefore need to be appropriately
informed and be assured enough so they can ask for and be given the desired
answers. This can only be adequately accomplished through adequate training
of the staff who are expected to implement ethnic monitoring strategies.

Also when those involved know and own the result of what they are informedly
participating in they will be more willing to work at issues with the
institution and will be able to take responsibility more readily, when
things either happen or need to happen. This takes away the
conflict/suspicious environment and creates a more conducive atmosphere for
both the institution and either student or employee to objectively work
together in . It is a much more natural way of working and therefore more
assured of succeeding.This is something that has been tried, tested and
proved to work, in other institutions, as an effective way of guaranteeing
high monitoring returns.

The bottom line justification for this is that, (not mentioning the RRAA
General and Specific Duties) the Towards Equality and Diversity Legislation
for HEIs on Sexual Orientation, Religion, Disability and Age is now looming
and my advice to institutions is to be pro-active and start now to look at
these areas of implementation rather than wait to adopt a reactive response
later on when the legislation is upon us. From our experiences with the RRAA
requirements, it is definitely more practical to do it this way than let
ourselves be ambushed by potentially litigious issues when we could have
adequately prepared ourselves. Besides, it goes without saying that as
institutions that are genuinely constantly working towards best employment
and service provision practice,this would be a logical and practical step to
make. After all we can all put our heads together and come up with the best
possible way forward on this!!!!

The CRE advice on page 8 of The Guide for Public Authorities on Ethnic
Monitoring is being given in the context of an employer who might be viewed
by the prospective employee, based on certain questions, as asking those
particular questions in order to discriminate against that particular
employee on grounds that might be concluded from certain answers(as has
happened many a time from the CRE's case-work evidence). The CRE would not
in any way, dissuade any employer or service provider from appropriately
communicating with their employee or student in such a way as to positively
establish their needs so that they may work together to adequately and
appropriately address those real needs. This is why Section 71 of the 1976
Race Relations Act was amended into the RRAA, in the first place.

In conclusion, I would say that any monitoring strategy that an institution
seeks to implement as a way of working towards best employment and service
provision practice, should be encouraged, notwithstanding the pending
legislative obligations. Your intention to ask a question or questions on
religion or any other area in order to identify real needs and/or impact of
institutional policies, is progressive and positive and is commensurate with
the advice that the ECU has been giving to institutions as to the best way
of dealing with the implementation of the Towards Equality and Diversity
Employment Directive (please refer to the attached paper, especially
paragraph 24 on page 3)

I hope this answers your query and if you need to know more then please do
not hesitate to get back to me.

Can I also ask whether you would mind if I were to put your query and my
answer out to the Jiscmail, in an anonymised form of course? I think your
question is so pertinent it will be helpful for other institutions to know,
after all we are about sharing good/best practice ideas.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Regards
Mannie.

 <<Towards Equality and Diversity txt only.doc>>





Mannie Kusemamuriwo
Policy Adviser: Ethnicity & Cultural Diversity
Equality Challenge Unit
3rd Floor, 4 Tavistock Place
London WC1H 9RA

Tel 020 7520 7060
Fax 020 7520 7069
[log in to unmask]