You asked

I would like to request information on institutional racism/racial microaggressions documented against black people within the last 5 years at ONS. I would also like to know how ONS deals with such situations in regards to support for black peers and education for those who insight it within the workplace and how methods have changed over time.

We said

Thank you for your email.

We take any accusation of racism seriously and investigate all complaints of any nature fully.

Since April 2018 (this is the date at which we introduced a tracking system allowing us to record all employment relations cases supported centrally by the Complex Casework team) we have received 7 complaints from staff related to race, addressed under the relevant ONS policy and procedures. 1 formal grievance was raised relating to race between October 2015 and April 2018.

Support in place for employees includes:

  • Respect Contacts – employee volunteers available to support all colleagues who feel they are experiencing bullying, harassment, or discrimination.
  • Employee Assistance Provider – a confidential support service providing advice, triage and counselling.
  • Speaking Up Framework – outlines the policies and procedures within ONS for raising and reporting a concern.
  • Employee networks including the BAME (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) Network that was launched in March 2020.

In terms of education, we have:

  • Delivered a learning intervention called Improving Working Relationships across the organisation, which includes information on microaggressions. This programme started in 2019.
  • Recently refreshed the inclusion and diversity content in our new manager learning programme to include information on microaggressions.
  • Enhanced our induction programme which sets out information on our expectations, support available for colleagues and routes for raising concerns.
  • Encouraged all employees to complete the inclusion and diversity modules available on Civil Service Learning.