EU Agencies United in Diversity

May is European Diversity Month – an opportunity to celebrate what makes us unique and to acknowledge that together we are stronger and richer.

We may come from diverse backgrounds, gender, age, or sexual orientation; share different beliefs or values, have different physical abilities, communicate in other languages, or make different choices.  But, in the end, we are all part of the same journey. A brand new video, developed by F4E, invites you to discover how our different identity layers can co-exist in the work environment.

In EU Agencies diversity is our strength. Together with equality, these are our top priorities, and we aspire promoting them in the workplace with targeted action plans and measures. They may range from addressing multiculturalism to the development of gender action plans, trainings on promoting inclusion at work and fighting stigma, measures on making office more accessible to all regardless of their physical abilities.

In EU Agencies we want our staff to feel valued and respected, and to be offered the opportunity to bring out the best in them. We want them to be comfortable of who they are. A survey conducted by the EU Agencies Network (EUAN) Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) working group concluded that most of the members of staff feel comfortable talking about their background and culture with their colleagues (80%). They also believe diversity should be among their Agency’s top priorities (78%) and that people of all backgrounds are respected and valued (71%).

However, only 24% of the respondents think Agencies provide a comprehensive policy for the full inclusion of persons with disabilities and enough training to promote equal opportunities. Similarly, only 27% are of the opinion that Agencies provide sufficient training programmes promoting diversity and inclusion.

There is still much to be achieved but, bit by bit, we are moving forward to building more diverse and inclusive organisations. Those interested in pursuing a career in the EU should know that European organisations are all equal opportunity employers and consider diversity an asset. This is what makes Europe stronger and richer.

To learn more about our mission and values click here.