The European Commission aims to foster a diverse and inclusive work environment, free of discrimination, where our workforce is representative of our society.
Fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace
The European Commission has adopted several policies to strengthen Europe’s commitment to equality, such as:
- a gender equality strategy
- an antiracism action plan
- a Roma strategic framework
- a strategy for the rights of LGBTIQ persons
- a strategy for the rights of persons with disabilities
As an employer, the Commission has set itself the goal of leading by example. In its new HR strategy, it aims to improve diversity among its staff to better reflect the diversity of the European population.
In the current Commission mandate (2019-2024), one of the political priorities is to achieve gender parity at all management levels.
By mid-2024, the share of women in management functions is:
- up nearly 12 percentage points since the beginning of the mandate at senior management level (48.3%)
- up 12 percentage points at middle management level (48.9%)
- up nearly 10 percentage points overall (48.8%).
This already places the Commission among the very few public administrations around the world with the highest share of women in leadership positions. However, our aim is gender equality at all levels. To reach this aim, incremental measures are being put in place gradually, so that by the end of the current Commission mandate overall parity can be reached.
In addition, the institution is determined to practice a zero-tolerance policy regarding discrimination on all grounds towards its staff members, as enshrined in the Treaty on the functioning the European Union.
The Diversity and Inclusion Office (DIO) in DG Human Resources was created in 2020 to:
- coordinate the development of a diverse and inclusive work culture
- cooperate with other institutions and organisations in this respect
In 2021, the Commission conducted a survey to gauge perceptions of diversity and inclusion among people working in the Commission, its executive agencies and the European External Action Service. The 10,000 responses gave us a picture of staff sentiment and have fed into a new diversity and inclusion action plan, which is designed to improve the current working environment and the prospects of the Commission as an employer.
The updated diversity and inclusion action plan was adopted at the end of 2022 after extensive internal consultations. It sets out the key actions planned around diversity and inclusion for 2023 and 2024 as part of the implementation of the Human Resources Strategy.
Fact Sheet on the Diversity and inclusion in the workplace - Action Plan 2023-2024
- 5 SEPTEMBER 2023
Factsheet on Diversity, inclusion and respect at the workplace: survey
- 6 MARCH 2024