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The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has today published its first guidance on workforce equality data dedicated to the uniformed services.

The guidance aims to help armed forces, police forces and fire and rescue services improve how they collect and analyse workforce equality data – an important first step in tackling entrenched cultures of harassment and discrimination in Britain’s uniformed services.  

Although services are legally required to analyse and publish their equality data, evidence from within the sector shows that gaps remain. Without good quality equality data, employers will struggle to understand if their staff are experiencing harassment, discrimination or victimisation at work – and how they can resolve it.  

In 2023 Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services reported that police and fire services lacked an understanding of the diversity of their staff and had substantial gaps in their equality data, which could prevent services from identifying and resolving problems in their workforces. The report found instances of bullying, harassment and a lack of diversity in more than half of fire and rescue services in England.  

The EHRC intends for its guidance to help leaders and managers drive positive culture change throughout the uniformed services, as well as greater compliance with the law. The resource will help them create safer work environments, guiding employers on how they can use equality data to inform targeted anti-harassment policies, for example.  

The equality regulator’s guidance could bring cultural, economic and reputational benefits to the uniformed services. Good equality data will help employers better understand the make-up and needs of their workforce, improving staff recruitment and retention and boosting their reputation as inclusive employers.  

Martyn Jones JP DL, Acting Wales Commissioner at the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said:  

“As Britain’s equality regulator, we are committed to ensuring that everyone is treated fairly and equally at work. That includes those working in the uniformed services. Police officers, firefighters and members of the armed forces dedicate their lives to keeping their community and this country safe. While the nature of the uniformed services means that their workplace cultures are unlike any other, their workforces should be just as safe, equal and fair.

“Yet racial and sexual harassment, discrimination and victimisation remain entrenched in the workforces of these important services. We know that an important step in tackling this is improving organisations’ equality data.

“Collecting and analysing good equality data is essential for services to build an accurate picture of their workforce, the needs of their staff and any issues they are facing. The more uniformed services know about a problem, the more effectively they can tackle it – using their insight to design tailored policies that prevent workplace harassment and discrimination.  

“That’s why we have worked closely with services to design guidance that will help them improve their organisations and create safe and inclusive environments for all their employees. Our guidance will help them comply with the law, while bringing organisations one step closer to a necessary culture change in the sector.” 

The EHRC’s ‘Collecting and analysing equality data’ guidance is the first of its kind published by a regulator and was co-developed with members of the uniformed services sector.  

It serves as an introductory guide to the collection and analysis of equality data – that can be applied to all uniformed services workforces and used by staff across the sector – from those working in HR and finance to equality, diversity and inclusion and professional standards.  

The guidance is part of the equality regulator’s wider programme of work to prevent sexual harassment, race and sex-based discrimination, harassment and victimisation in the workplaces of uniformed services. The EHRC identifies collecting good quality equality data as a critical first step for understanding problems such as discrimination and harassment in the uniformed services workforces.  Its programme also focuses on building effective partnerships with other sector regulators, supporting services to implement the Public Sector Equality Duty and sexual harassment preventative duty, and taking enforcement action where necessary if services do not comply with the law.