Written Evidence Submitted by the Met Office

(DIV0057)

The Met Office is the UK’s National Meteorological Service, a Public Sector Research Establishment and an Executive Agency of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. We are responsible for monitoring and forecasting the weather and providing the National Severe Weather Warning Service (NSWWS) which warns of the impacts caused by severe weather ranging from disruption to transportation networks to danger to life. We offer careers in Science, Engineering and Technology and IT, among other professions. We also have apprentice opportunities in various professions across the organisation including Technology, Human Resources, Engineering and Legal Services. 

The Met Office employs around 2000 staff, with nearly 1600 being in a STEM related role. We are continuously striving to achieve a culture that values ability, difference, openness, fairness, transparency and inclusivity, aiming to go beyond the statutory and legal requirements.

We cannot respond on diversity in STEM for the whole sector, however we can provide information and data specific to the Met Office. In addition, our response seeks to highlight some of the barriers the Met Office has experienced as an organisation, and how we are trying to overcome these, including some of the actions we have taken to date.

1. the nature or extent to which women, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities and those from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds are underrepresented in STEM in academia and industry;

While we cannot comment on the situation for the entire sector, we can provide the Met Office gender pay grade figures amongst STEM staff (excluding contractors) (Figure 1), and the overall STEM staff profile for age and gender (Figure 2), to be used as an example of the representation of women in STEM. The Met Office has a 92% self-declaration rate as of December 2021 and this figure includes staff who choose not to declare their personal information. 

Figure 1: Met Office STEM staffing (headcount) gender split per grade December 2021

Figure 2: STEM staff (headcount) profile by age and gender

Our 2020 people surveys indicate we have around 16-19% of staff who are disabled. The number of ethnic minorities employed by the Met Office is less than 3.6%.

We have traditionally a very static workforce with a low turnover. A picture of characteristics and recruitment is not available as we have only recently made changes to the fields used for our recruitment system. We intend to use the new data to update our multi-year action plans. As an organisation we have a number of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I) networks which are now very active and supporting us with the delivery of our ED&I Strategy.

When looking across all industries, it is important to recognise that data collection is a key issue. Organisations collect and report ED&I data in different ways resulting in a lack of consistent ED&I data sets across the UK. This lack of consistency could impact comparability, insights and action.

2. the reasons why these groups are under represented;

As mentioned in our response to Q1, full data on all characteristics at the Met Office is currently unavailable. Therefore the reasons given on underrepresentation (below), are based primarily on anecdotal evidence from our employees. The Met Office has also launched a new project collating data in this area to allow for the continuous improvement of our recruitment processes.   

Geographical flexibility in contracts:

Feedback from applicants has told us that the Met Office’s previous approach to geographical flexibility has limited the location of applicants. Often applicants want to remain close to the communities they grew up in. Those who don’t have psychological ties are more likely to travel further afield. This could disproportionality impact women and those with caring responsibilities.

Being based in the Southwest of the UK may also influence the diversity of our applicants due to the demographics of the regional population (e.g. lower levels of diversity than some other regions), and also the level of attractiveness of the area to younger applicants. 

The pandemic and global skills shortages have triggered many employers, including the Met Office, to offer more flexible or remote working, which should help to reduce the impact of geographical issues on our recruitment process. Details on how we have changed our approach to can be seen under Q4.   

Flexible working patterns: 

A limited number of part-time or job share positions traditionally, may have impacted disproportionately on females, disabled staff and those with caring responsibilities. In certain ethnic minority communities, there tends to be an expectation often that female members will look after elders. As above, we hope that the increased flexible-working now on offer will improve the situation. 

Long term health issues/disabilities:

Recruitment processes in the majority of STEM employers are designed for ‘neurotypical’ applicants. The Met Office has started to hold more neurodiverse friendly recruitment campaigns to address this (further information in Q4).  

3. the implications of these groups being underrepresented in STEM roles in academia and industry;

Although we do not have any data to quantify the implications of underrepresentation, feedback from staff in our ED&I networks is that a lack of visible role models can discourage people considering a career in the Met Office.

4. what has been done to address underrepresentation of particular groups in STEM roles; and

The Met Office has been striving to improve diversity in STEM in a number of ways:

Outreach work:

We want to inspire the next generation to study STEM subjects, attract a diverse and inclusive workforce and enable our employees to develop their professional skills during their careers. To help us do this the Met Office participates in and coordinates a wide range of education and outreach activities aimed at young people and the general public, as part of our sustainability commitments. The aim of these activities is to increase interest in Met Office science and technology (and STEM more generally) and encourage interest in STEM careers both here at the Met Office and further afield.

We work towards these goals with help from an active group of volunteers, a large proportion of whom are enrolled as STEM Ambassadors, part of a national programme coordinated by STEM Learning. We currently have more than 270 STEM Ambassadors at the Met Office, which attend a wide range of events throughout the year, and we also run Science Camp at our head office.

To engage and educate a younger audience, we launched a TikTok channel to find new and effective ways to communicate with young people. Working with TikTok and using their #LearnOnTikTok, has proved successful in increasing followers and broadening our outreach. (More information on our channel and the campaign can be provided if required)

Early Careers Strategy:

We look for talented people from all backgrounds to drive forward innovation at the Met Office.  As such, we offer a range of opportunities for work experience, apprenticeships, industrial placements, summer placements, graduates and studentships.  Last year, we started 37 apprenticeships and we are currently recruiting for 35 Industrial placements to start in July. We also sponsor 65 PhD CASE (formerly known as 'Collaborative Awards in Science and Engineering') students across a number of UK universities and support a further 12 PhD students.

Equality Diversity & Inclusion Strategy with multi-year action plan:

We recognise the need for our ED&I strategy to tie into wider organisational and government strategies. Our first ED&I Strategy was created in January 2021 and refreshed in January 2022. The Strategy ties into a multi-year ED&I Plan and is available on our website.

Resourcing:

The Met Office’s new ‘Future Normal’ flexibility now allows homeworking from communities across the UK for many posts and we advertise more widely across a range of platforms and media to reach and engage with a wider applicant base. All our job adverts now include a statement on hybrid remote working, as well as stating that applicants wishing to work elsewhere in the UK will be considered (where appropriate). 

The Met Office has begun holding specialist neurodiverse-friendly recruitment campaigns to attract a wider range of applicants. Events such as Tech Engage, allow potential applicants to visit the Met Office to gain insight into the work we do and explore career opportunities. Inspired visitors will have the opportunity for a less pressured interview which enables us to fully grasp their potential.

Our ED&I strategic action plan identified the need to track our applicant success in our recruitment processes from an ED&I perspective. Data is regularly reviewed and will be reported annually; we would be happy to share the report with the Committee when it is available.

Networks:

To attract and support staff and improve wider organisational understanding of issues faced we have established support networks for Autism, ADHD, Black and Ethnic Minorities, Carer Support, Internationals in the UK, LGBT+, Mental Health and Wellbeing, Menopause and Women. We have also initiated a Women in Climate network jointly with Exeter University. Executive Directors also sponsor each of our networks, demonstrating a ‘top-down’ commitment to championing ED&I.

As well as being a massive support to the wellbeing of our employees, these networks are a vital asset to providing insights into our workforce and where we might be able to undertake further improvements. 

ED&I and STEM Communications:

We understand that it is vital to raise awareness of ED&I in the workplace along with our commitment to improving staff representation and have made use of our external facing platforms to do this. 

We are increasing communications on our website to encourage a wider range of applicants.  On our career webpages we have a number of pages dedicated to the journeys of our staff, including Women in STEM and real life stories of different routes into STEM professions. 

To showcase our commitment to ED&I, our news blog covers specific EDI events that the Met Office has supported e.g. World Disability Day. 

At COP26, the Met Office hosted an important panel discussion on ‘what women bring to climate science’, which covered how gender equality can be achieved and diversity increased in science leadership. 

We also use a diverse range of communications channels from Tik Tok to LinkedIn to increase the public awareness of what we do and our ED&I activity.

External Accreditation:

We are a Disability Confident Employer, having achieved level 2, a quality mark awarded by the Department of Work and Pensions, for our positive commitment to the employment, retention, training and career development of disabled employees. 

In October 2021, we achieved an Investors in Diversity Award following a rigorous assessment process.

We have also signed the Mindful Employer charter which supports mental wellbeing at work.

5. what could and should be done by the UK Government, UK Research and Innovation, other funding bodies, industry and academia to address the issues identified.

As an organisation that works collaboratively across the industry, the Met Office would welcome greater coordination around ED&I activity and communications to encourage sharing best practice, resources and creating opportunities. Greater private and public sector cooperation could also ensure suitable career paths and foster the wider skills needed for all industries and sectors. 

This concept also extends to the relationship between industry and academia where effective partnerships can showcase a commitment to diversity to students, graduates and potential and current employees. For example, the Women in Climate (WiC) network is a joint University of Exeter and Met Office initiative to support the retention of women in climate science and promote diversity. 

The sector has traditionally relied upon experts working globally. As such, the Met Office welcomes Government initiatives such as the Skilled Workers visa, and the Global Talent visa for academic bodies and would support further such initiatives that would cover Government bodies, enabling us to employ highly qualified applicants from abroad. We would also welcome any other initiatives that provide faster ability to host visitors from abroad and gain research insights.

Other solutions could also include:

• Greater flexible working options across the Civil Service including career breaks.
• Changes to procurement policies to drive change in ED&I and HR practices into the wider sector e.g. through requests for evidence of compliance with Equality Act, ED&I activity and best practice.
• Ensuring pay and benefit remits can continue to support exceptional talent in the public sector and remuneration strategies do the same in private industry.

(January 2022)