Diversity at Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Trade

I feel they cater to diversity and the strength of it.

I think more could be done in creating more opportunities for recruitment of M?ori, Pasifika and other ethnic communities, and meaningful integration of cultural perspectives into work. I appreciate some of the training opportunities we had, the w?nanga that we participated in during the foundations programme was excellent.

On recruitment I think the Ministry could look more in depth at what they consider to be a priority if they are recruiting from a diversity perspective because anything less becomes tokenistic. On retention again the workplace culture plays into that while I cannot make any complaints as I have landed in a good team I can't say the same of all teams.

I think that the Ministry has done a good job in creating a safe space for all ranges of diversity, although I do sometimes think we have to work within the constraints of the government of the day, and that can have the effect of limiting a genuine commitment to diversity. For example, this governments aversion to te reo maori and matauranga maori.

The organisation has started to hire a more diverse range of people. However, more effort is needed in the MELA and Pasifika spaces as these groups are underrepresented compared to others.

People in the LGBTQIA+ community are welcome and well accepted. There are more women than men at MFAT generally, but still a larger proportion of men in middle management positions. There is increasing ethnic diversity in the ministry, however there is room for improvement in this area.

Clear that this has been improving recently but they still have a way to go. From what I have seen people are treated with respect and there are different clubs that celebrate diversity. Further you get up the management ladder, e.g. up to Senior Leadership Team, the less diversity and more stories about lack of respect and close-mindedness. OK parental leave policy, good flexibility for working from home. Not very accessible office.

The networks at MFAT put huge amounts of work into diversity - whether it be organising events, holding fundraisers, or talking to management about issues. Their mahi is admirable.

Great measures to support those at Post with families (partners and dependents), otherwise much the same as other workplaces with a slight edge on M?ori engagement and recognition.

Getting a lot better. Greater focus on matauranga M?ori, empowering women, and encouraging employees to respect different personalities and working styles.

Plenty of diversity at the lower levels; diversity at higher levels varies depending on division but in ours there are no female management.

Great work with LGBT and women, the ethnic diversity efforts fluctuate and the leadership isn't particularly representative or responsive to change

As you would expect.

I think the Ministry has made a big effort to diversify the workforce. Many of the senior leaders are currently males and/or of European descent but there is incredibly talented women and people of ethnic minorities moving up through the ranks and the future faces of the Ministry will be more diverse. The Ministry wants to foster diversity and encourage people of diverse background to join and stay at the Ministry and I think this will change the face of the Ministry, the way we do our jobs and the culture in a really positive way.

Positive but if you look at our senior leadership it isn't really that diverse.

Getting better

Race-based