Diversity and inclusion
At the ECB, we believe diversity creates excellence – more diverse teams mean a wider range of opinions, leading to better and more robust results. It is essential that we connect with the best talent so that we can take the best possible decisions for the good of all citizens of the euro area, and our diversity is central to this.
We aspire to be an organisation in which diversity is welcomed and appreciated in all its facets for the richness that it offers. Enabling diversity is vital to our institution in order to deliver the best possible outcome for our staff and for Europe. The facets of diversity include – but are not limited to – age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation and other characteristics.
Our initiatives to fight racism
There is no place for racism at the ECB, in the EU or anywhere else. We need to nurture mutual understanding, invest in making diversity a success and dismantle the harmful notion of racial superiority. We each have a responsibility to #FightRacism and stand up against intolerant attitudes.
We keep tackling racism in all its forms.
Our initiatives to promote diversity and inclusion:
- organising training for staff to raise awareness about diversity and inclusion;
- running diversity and inclusion surveys that also address race and ethnicity, to better understand the views and needs of our staff;
- working closely with the ECB Ethnic & Cultural Group to listen to and address the needs of our colleagues;
- ensuring that ECB communications represent the citizens we serve, including people of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds;
- using inclusive language style guides, highlighting words to be avoided due to racist histories or because they can foster stigmas.
Fighting racism is a journey and we continue to strive throughout our institution to ensure that our employees work in an inclusive and diverse environment.
Cross-institutional initiatives
The ECB has launched a cross-institutional charter on equality, diversity and inclusion in collaboration with other institutions from the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) and the Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM).
Signing the charter means that we commit to a set of shared principles, common goals and concrete actions to embrace a culture based on equality, diversity, respect, dignity and inclusion within and across our institutions, which includes:
- reflecting the diversity of the citizens we serve
- fostering inclusive workplaces free from any form of discrimination
- sharing best practices, knowledge and experience
Other initiatives on diversity
Here are some of the initiatives we undertake to support the development of greater diversity and inclusion in our institution:
- marking days by celebrating a variety of facets, including the International Day of People with Disabilities, International Day of Commemoration in memory of the victims of the Holocaust, International Women’s Day and the International Day against Homophobia, Biphobia, Interphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT);
- having regular Inspiring Leaders talks (including speeches from World Bank Senior Vice President Sandie Okoro and Central Bank of Ireland Deputy Governor Ed Sibley);
- participating in Frankfurt’s Christopher Street Day (Pride) parade;
- making breast-feeding facilities available in all ECB premises;
- instituting gender targets to increase our share of women at the ECB.
- pilot on traineeships restricted to candidates on the autism spectrum (eligibility will be checked on the basis of a medical certificate confirming the autism diagnosis).
In February 2021, EDGE certified the ECB at its MOVE level – a level higher than the original certification in 2019. EDGE certification is the leading global assessment methodology and business certification standard for gender equality.
Having independently assessed our efforts to foster gender equality and benchmarked us against both global standards and our peers, EDGE has recognised our progress in fostering gender equality in the workplace. We remain committed to being a gender-diverse and inclusive organisation. This commitment includes regularly conducting gender pay gap analyses to ensure that our remuneration system offers equal pay for equivalent work regardless of gender.