Queen Mary, University of London is committed to the provision of equality of opportunity for all its students and staff. The College aims to create and maintain an appropriate environment in which all people can learn, work and interact freely without fear of discrimination, prejudice or harassment.
All students and staff of the College will be treated equitably and with dignity.
Queen Mary is committed to promote the diversity of its staff and student body.

News

Monitoring of staff Sexual Orientation - update your details 

From Summer 2012, Queen Mary will start recording staff sexual orientation as part of our commitment to equality and diversity. 

Why do we need this information?

We want to gather data which will enable us to measure the representation, progress, recruitment and retention of lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) staff within the workforce. It may also help us identify any obstacles within organisational structures or procedures and modify these accordingly to promote equality of opportunity.

It’s difficult to get policies, procedures and services right if we have no idea of the numbers of staff affected by these issues.

Queen Mary wants to promote an environment where staff can be happy and comfortable in expressing themselves at work. Part of this may include an employee’s sexual orientation.

Sexual orientation is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act we therefore need to do more than react to allegations and instances of discrimination.

The Higher Education Statistical Agency (HESA) will be starting to gather data about LGB representation.

We collected staff sexual orientation on the last Staff Attitude survey and received a good response rate of disclosure.

How can I update my details?

You can update your details via myHR, in the personal details section

For new starters, the information is collected on the personal details form.

Who will be able to access this information?

Only a small number of staff will access this information. The Diversity Specialist will have access to anonymous aggregated data on staff sexual orientation. Some HR administrators will have access to this information to input it on our computer system when it has been shared in circumstances such a new recruit.

This information is protected under the Data Protection Act. The College will not publish data from which the content of the declaration of an employee can be inferred.

The data will not be viewed by your managers or your colleagues and will never be used for job selection or promotion.

What if I do not want to disclose my sexual orientation?

We would like to you to encourage colleagues to disclose, as it is important that we have a complete set of data. There will be an option not to disclose information.

Other College’s initiatives on sexual orientation

QM has an active staff network, QM Out which meets regularly and is planning events for next year, if you would like more information, please visit:

http://www.hr.qmul.ac.uk/equality/equalityorientation/lgbtstaffnet/76506.html

We are also part of the Stonewall Diversity Champion programme to ensure we embed best practices for LGB people and we submit to a ranking exercise every year.

More information on:

http://www.hr.qmul.ac.uk/equality/equalityorientation/index.html

Where can I get more information?

Stonewall, which is the premier LGB charity, has produced a very useful guide on data monitoring and why organisations need this information that you can access here.

You can contact the Diversity Specialist if you have any questions or consult the equality webpages.

Who can I contact about this?

If you have queries, please contact Bertille Calinaud, Diversity Specialist, who says: "As QM's Diversity Specialist, I'm really pleased that our records will soon help us ensure equality at work. I encourage everyone to update their records, and be assured of our commitment to protect private information. I think this quote from the University of the Arts hits the nail on the head: 'It’s not about putting you in a box – It’s about helping to dismantle them.' "

QM Out - LGBT Staff Network - 20th September 5pm mini AGM and welcome to the new year

To be added to QM Out mailing list, email Bertille Calinaud
Please consult the staff network page here.

The mailing list is confidential and only the administrator, currently Bertille Calinaud (Diversity Specialist) has access to it.

Student representatives and society

The student “liberation officer” for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender student  is Donald McKinnon, please contact him if you have any query, would like to be involved or have any issues to raise: 
lgbtofficer@qmsu.org

Please visit the student union website for more information:
http://www.qmsu.org/studentvoice/studentcouncil/

Queen Mary also has a LGBT student society:
http://www.qmsu.org/groups/LGBT/
https://www.facebook.com/#!/QMSULGBT

Stonewall University Guide Book

Queen Mary was ranked in the last Stonewall University Guide Book.

Please find below some information about the Guide book and where you can find information, advice and support at Queen Mary.

Stonewall Guide Book "Gay by Degree"
http://www.gaybydegree.org.uk/index.php?dir=university&task=view-detail&uniId=92

Advice, Welfare and Counseling Service:
http://www.welfare.qmul.ac.uk/
http://www.qmsu.org/advice/

Career Service:
http://www.careers.qmul.ac.uk/

School of Law: Pink Law - Free legal advice for the LGBT community

Every month, the law school deliver free legal advice session for the Gay Community and for Business, where student and staff can go if they wish so, on the following topic:
• Employment discrimination
• Cohabitation
• Civil partnerships
• Immigration
http://www.advicecentre.law.qmul.ac.uk/pink/index.html

Useful Guides and Website:

Please find below further external information and links, Queen Mary legal advice centre has contributed to some of them.

 Stonewall : working to promote equality for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual People

Galop: Community safety charity for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender people