I know this is a bit of a niche request but are there any General Dental Council (GDC) registrants on here that would like to make a bit of a fuss about the GDC's equality and diversity data collection? Last year there was a new question on the equality and diversity questionnaire that is completed at annual renewal...
Is your gender identity the same as the gender you were assigned at birth?
So I did an FOI request asking the following questions:
1. What definition of “gender identity” is the GDC using for the purposes of the gender identity question?
2. What do the GDC mean by the term “gender you were assigned at birth”? Is this the same as the sex recorded on your birth certificate?
3. What purpose do the GDC have for collecting data relating to registrants’ “gender identity” when this is not a protected characteristic according to the Equality Act 2010?
4. Who advised the GDC on the wording of the “gender identity” question? Neither “gender” nor “gender identity” are protected characteristics according to the Equality Act, so the wording must have come from somewhere else. I am interested to know how the phrasing/wording of this question has come about?
5. Why have the GDC decided not to collect data relating to the protected characteristics of “sex” and “gender reassignment” for equality monitoring purposes?
6. How does the GDC monitor equality and diversity relating to the protected characteristics of “sex” and “gender reassignment” if there are no questions asked about these characteristics? For example, how does the GDC intend to guard against “sex” discrimination if they are not collecting data relating to people’s sex? How does the GDC intend to guard against discrimination against registrants who have undergone/are undergoing “gender reassignment”?
This is the GDC's response...
We recognise that the terminology used in conjunction with equality monitoring is regularly changing and evolving. An important part of the GDC’s Equality and Diversity strategy is undertaking a review of what data we need to collect to support our regulatory work to ensure we are an inclusive organisation for patients, the dental teams we regulate, and GDC employees. The existing strategy is currently being reviewed in time for its replacement in 2021.
Turning to your request, we do not have a record of the advice received at the time the monitoring questionnaire was created about any of the terms used. The term ‘gender you were assigned at birth’ used within the questionnaire refers to the biological sex recorded on the registrant’s birth certificate.
The GDC’s purpose in collecting data relating to registrants’ ‘gender identity’ is to assist us with monitoring and reporting on the levels of diversity among registrants who choose to provide this information. The information provided in the monitoring questionnaire is reviewed and reported on to ensure the way the GDC regulates, the policies it develops, and service it provides are inclusive and representative.
One of the reasons why an organisation might choose to collect information in relation to ‘gender identity’ is to ensure they understand the impact of policies and procedures and do not discriminate against someone where their gender identity is different from the gender assigned when they were born.
Anyway I've replied again asking for a review as they didn't really answer my questions very satisfactorily but it appears from their reply that they are currently reviewing their Equality and Diversity strategy and I am wondering if it might be worth making a bit of fuss now before it is published.
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Feminism: Sex & gender discussions
Any GDC registrants on here?
12 replies
Signalbox · 05/11/2020 14:12
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