DEI form at work

[namechangedeiform]

Name changed but long-time user.

My work has introduced a new monitoring form where employees can add their diversity data. Specifically: gender identity, sexual orientation, race, disability, religion, and age. FWIW my employer is very Stonewalled - a gold champion or something.

I work in an industry where women are seriously underrepresented and often quit early in their careers.

It's an entirely optional form, but I'd like to fill in the form as I'd like there to be better data about the female population in our company, but I can't see anywhere to record my sex.

The options for "gender identity" are only: Male, Female, Non Binary, Other Gender, or Prefer Not To Say. There's no free text input.

The options for "pronouns" are only: He/Him, She/Her, and They/Them. Again there's no free text input.

Is this right? Can I ask for an option to have "No belief in gender identity" similar to the option for "atheist" in the religion section of the form? Does anyone have any guidance about this kind of data collection?

There probably is also information held elsewhere about your sex - if your employer reports on the gender pay gap they should already have this.
Our place has this “optional” form too - we are encouraged to add the diversity info but there’s no requirement, and we can add as much or as little as we want to (eg could add religion but not gender identity, as it were). I’ve ignored it.

It doesn't look like they want data on sex, though? So I'm not sure you'd achieve anything by filling it in. Could you ask them to include it, as there is still huge inequality between the sexes?

Can't just add religion or race, and skip the gender identity bit. It's all or nothing.

The purpose of it is to improve diversity, and the sex disparity is one of the biggest problems. I just assumed a form monitoring diversity data would ask for info about sex.

Nothing it is, surely?

I agree there should be a question on sex. If they are going to list the Equality Act 2010 protected characteristics then they need to ask about them all then ask questions above and beyond like gender identity.

Something like this

1. What is your sex? m/f/prefer not to say.

Use the sex registered on your birth certificate or Gender Recognition certificate (I know but it is a legal fiction). A question on gender identity will follow. 2.Do you have a gender identity? Gender identity is an inner sense of gender (again I know but this is stonewall definition even if it is circular) n/y/prefer not to say. If yes:

1. Do you consider your gender to match your sex? Y/n/ prefer not to say. (By asking this you are including the protected characteristic of gender reassignment).
2. What is your gender identity?

Transman/transwoman/non-binary/ prefer not to say/prefer to self describe (space to write what this is).

What do you think? It does at least allow people to say they have no gender identity even if it is a bit long winded.

Every questionnaire I fill in that asks for my gender with the answers male, female, non binary, prefer not to say I tick prefer not to say and if I'm able I provide feedback saying I am unable to answer the question as it conflates sex and gender and I don't have a gender identity.

I have a lot of doubts that companies will be able to use this stuff to make a difference, I'd be inclined to just not fill it out at all.

I’d at least complain about them conflating sex and gender i.e. why is male and female listed under gender identity, that surely relates to sex and will be very confusing.

I’d bet whoever created that form did so with the intention of ignoring sex diversity and covering it over with gender identity diversity.

As pp suggested, I’d ask for them to separate them out, perhaps more so than the above suggestion. If they are going to measure gender identity diversity, it should be done in addition to sex, not instead of. I expect that will leave the data gatherers with a few difficulties interpreting some responses in the data, but it would be, on the whole, more useful. In a sensible world, trans people would choose ‘prefer not to say’ for sex and then pick whichever gender identity they want.

If you feel brave enough it might we worth asking them for a reason they want to collect the data on gender identity, which is not a protected characteristic, but omit the sex, which is? What is the purpose of this decision?

As it appears they're asking for the data on PCs (age, religion etc), but sex is substituted with GI, undoubtedly due to being Stonewalled. It would be interesting to see the justification in writing.

We have a similar thing with an annual employee survey where the first page asks about age bracket, race, work location etc etc and also gender, with the same options as the OP's case. You can't get past the first page without filling in all of the questions. I emailed the D&I officer to ask why it was this way and was told,

"This wording has been previously put to and agreed by representatives of our Pride Affinity Group. Please would you advise your preferred alternative and we will ask the Pride Group if they are in agreement for use going forward."

I replied with my preferred alternative, similar to the OP, but have never got a response. I guess the Pride Affinity Group didn't agree.

My company is all rainbowed up, so it is quite clear who is included in the inclusiveness initiatives, and it ain't women.

I’ve just filled in a very similar sounding form, required by my employer’s main funder. Questions were - what is your gender (options: female inc trans women, male inc trans men, non-binary i.e. neither or move between “different gendered behaviour”, and prefer not to say), I said prefer not to say but seems wrong not be counted as a woman. Next question was Does your gender identity match the sex you were “assumed to be” -actual words used!! - at birth (options: yes or no, without a prefer not to say option so my two responses made no sense together). No question about biological sex. What utter dross. Why can’t there just be separate questions for sex and gender? It also asked Do you identify as disabled which made me wonder if that is a whole other thing - do non-disabled people identify as disabled and demand to use accessible facilities or would nobody accept that, for some reason. FFS.

Does your gender identity match the sex you were “assumed to be” -actual words used!! - at birth

I would ask them to provide a list of which assumed sexes match which genders.

@DeaconBoo I’d love to - just typed a longish post twice detailing why I’m not going to but the page kept refreshing and lost it both times and is making me even crosser. “masculine and feminine gender-typed behaviour” - a direct quote from the form -is all that’s left on my clipboard. How can anyone think that makes sense in 2022?

Not very inclusive for the pronouns bit to leave out he/they, she/they, they/he, they/she, and xir/xie, etc like some of my colleagues use #justsayin

Who did it come from? HR? whoever it was, I'd email and say 'this needs a question about sex too.' See what they say.
Like a pp, if a questionnaire asks for my 'gender' but not sex, I tick prefer not to say and add a note saying I am unable to answer the question as it conflates sex and gender, but my sex is female.

@DameHelena unfortunately there’s nowhere to add a note. Google form, can’t miss out any responses or add anything extra.

Then I'd email whoever it came from and say 'this needs a question about sex too, and I don't wish to fill in the gender point; can you advise what to do?'

Yep I’m tempted but it came from my boss and we’re a tiny org funded by this huge org which set the questions. I’m already the middle aged woman who said No to adding pronouns to my email signature and want to keep my job which I love.