Introduction

Manatū Taonga leads the government work in the arts, heritage, broadcasting and sports sectors and provides our Ministers with advice on legislation, policy and sector development.

We operate in two sectors: the public sector, and the culture and heritage sector. It’s essential that we are competent and credible in both and so we nurture our small, but diverse workforce in an inclusive environment where cultural competency is a given and people are confident and supported to be their true selves.

Our focus is on strengthening inclusive practice and designing equitable systems and processes to improve the experience of all our people.

In early 2024, Manatū Taonga implemented a Human Resource Information Management System (HRIS). With a goal of improving applicant and employee experience and achieving administration benefits, the system provides insight and transparency on people data.

Employee survey

Our HRIS provides a quarterly Pulse Check or ‘Employee Satisfaction Survey’. This is our key channel for our people to provide feedback on how they feel about our workplace and organisational development activities. As we build up trend data, it will give us a meaningful measure of the impact of activities that contribute to inclusion and how people are feeling about their place of work.

72% of our people completed our recent survey, this gives us meaningful data and insight on what people like about our workplace and that they considered to be areas for improvement.

Commitment

The people at Manatū Taonga understand the value of diversity and our leaders are committed to maintaining a workplace where it can thrive.

Our Ministry is responsible for nurturing a national culture that is reflective and inclusive, and which supports all New Zealanders to connect with each other, their communities and society. To be effective, we foster a workforce that can empathise with, and represent the communities we serve. The vision of Manatū Taonga is as relevant within our organisation as it is for Aotearoa:

Ki te puāwai te ahurea, ka ora te iwi
Culture is thriving, the people are well

Diversity

Manatū Taonga is a relatively small Ministry with five main business groups. We have a headcount of 156 (at 7/10/24).

Overall, Manatū Taonga is made up of 62% female, 37% male and 1% another gender. This rises to over 86% female/14% male in Grades 1-4 which is a key driver of our gender pay gap.

Data in this document is as at 7 October 2024 and includes employees on parental leave.

Ethnicity

We engage with new staff to ensure they understand the reason and value of sharing ethnicity information. These conversations encourage reflection on their identity and a high rate of ethnicity disclosure (Currently 100%). This ethnicity group data includes staff that identify with more than one ethnicity.

In leadership, there is an improved representation of males and Māori.

Diversity data is reported quarterly for monitoring by the Ministry leadership team.

Rainbow community

8% of our people, including leaders, identify as members of the Rainbow Community and are members of our Rainbow Network. In 2024, this network facilitated an event to gain input from our people on what makes an inclusive workplace. Some of this input is noted below.

Flexible working

Manatū Taonga has promoted and advocated for flexible working for many years and most employees utilise some form of flexibility in start/finish times and working location. This flexibility supports a diverse workforce and is valued by our people. We are well supported by our technology and infrastructure to seamlessly integrate flexibility into our activities.

Recruitment

Our Applicant Tracking System gives us demographic information that helps target our advertising. Diversity targets can only be achieved through the successful attraction of a diverse applicant pool and this data guides our decisions to ensure we are using effective language in our advertising and the best media for diversity and skills we need.

Bias

Our people are educated on the management of unconscious bias in their induction and we build diverse recruitment panels to support an equitable process for all.

Equity

Salary

In the 2023/24 financial year, the Ministry conducted a programme of organisational change which resulted in a decreased headcount and a new internal structure.

Due to the size of our organisation, statistics fluctuate as individuals come and go.

Pay gap

We have embedded our step-based remuneration framework which gives all eligible staff a step increase, within their pay grade, each July. In the lower grades, the design of the framework steps gives an accelerated path toward the mid-point of the grade. This approach has had a positive impact on our gender pay gap as a key driver for the gap at Manatū Taonga is that 85% of people in Grades 1-4 are women.

Gender pay gap: 7.0%
Māori pay gap: -2.0%

We have 20 staff who identify as Māori, four are leaders. No other groups are large enough for meaningful statistics.

Our work to eliminate bias and discrimination from remuneration includes:

• Review of policies and practices to build-in equitable processes.
• Creating diverse recruitment panels.
• Applying our remuneration structure and relativities when agreeing starting salaries.
• Quarterly reporting on gender pay gaps by business group

Inclusion

What our people say

In June 2024 we asked people for input on what makes an inclusive workplace. Feedback from participants identified elements we have in place that they consider important and gave us direction on priorities for improved inclusion going forward.

Our people recognised the following as contributors to our inclusive workplace:

• Diversity in leadership our team. 
  19% of our leaders are Māori and 10% are Pacific Peoples
• Leadership conversations about how people are feeling. 
  A key element of our, ‘Meaningful Conversations’ framework explores reflective practice and planning for personal wellbeing.
• Diverse collective bargaining teams.
• Space for parents for breastfeeding.
• Providing for different cultural needs – Tangi and cultural leave provisions, Te Reo attestation allowance, recognition of Language weeks.
• Spaces to safely and comfortably talk about pronouns. 
  All staff are educated on the use of pronouns.
• Safe bike parking space, shower, space to store your gear.
• Disability access
  MCH is wheelchair accessible for staff & visitors, our websites are designed for maximum accessibility.
• Flexible working
  Most staff use flexible working opportunities in some form.

Employee-led networks

All of our networks have Deputy Secretary sponsors who meet with their group regularly. This involvement ensures employee needs are heard and acted on by our senior leaders. We regularly remind our people to explore the opportunities offered by the increasing number of cross-ministry networks where our people can build relationships with other agencies.

Our networks provide a valuable channel for feedback on organisational development projects and topics. In 2024, a new Parents Network was started by one of our new mothers.

Cultural competence

Our people develop their Te Reo and Tikanga Māori skills through online courses, specialist university programmes and our in-house Waiata sessions. Support for individual development is available through our Study Assistance programme. This is a financial contribution towards course costs and the provision of study and exam preparation leave. Recognising the need to recover Te Reo Māori for tāngata whenua, Māori employees are given enhanced and prioritised access to study assistance for Te Reo and Tikanga development.

In our survey, people noted a desire for increased focus on building individual capability in Te Reo and history of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and Treaty Settlements. We see these as key development opportunities for building diversity, equity and inclusion. A ministry-wide programme on Treaty Settlements is currently in place and in 2025 we will further develop our in-house Te Reo learning resources.

Proposed DEI Activities

Action area: Inclusive leadership

Progress to date

Leader workshops delivered in 2023. Introduced Meaningful Conversations template that includes reflection and wellbeing planning which contributes to mutual understanding and relationship building.

Planned activity

Deliver Inclusive leadership development training & resources covering the six traits of inclusive leadership with a focus on Commitment.

Success indicators

Leader participation. Improved employee satisfaction. Retention.

Action area: Meaningful conversations

Progress to date

Regular promotion of our approach to leadership conversations and development planning – more focus on relationships and people feeling listened to.

Planned activity

Annual collation of agreed development goals to understand trends, Ministry-wide development needs, cultural capability development focus and up take of the template.

Success indicators

Capability Development aligned to agreed need.

Action area: Inclusive language / awareness of Rainbow Community

Progress to date

Pronoun use standardised across the Ministry.

Included in Induction and IMTS set up of new starters.

Learning materials provided by Te Kawa Mataaho.

Planned activity

Increase understanding of inclusive language and working with members of the Rainbow Community.

Deliver the elearning module from Te Kawa Mataaho/LDC Hub.

Success indicators

Evaluation of learning

Active use of inclusive language and pronouns included on email signatures.

Action area: Gender free facilities

Progress to date

Two separate facilities identified for update.

Planned activity

Seek approval to make changes via necessary channels and our building owner. Communicate the initiative and the importance of the drivers for this change.

Success indicators

Established gender-free facilities.

Action area: Recognition of pride and rainbow events

Progress to date

Representation in CARN, the cross-agency rainbow network and conference. Rainbow Network hosted collaboration to explore ‘What is an inclusive workplace?’. New Deputy Secretary Network Sponsor.

Planned activity

Support the Rainbow Network with the recognition of Pride and hold internal events.

Success indicators

Events approved and completed.

Action area: Developing cultural capability

Progress to date

Te Reo Essentials Launched. Treaty Settlement training under way. On-going Public History Talks.

Modules prepared and set up for MCH Delivery.

Planned activity

Roll out the Mana Aki (Inter-Cultural Capability learning programme) and link to how Ministry Work impacts cultures within Aotearoa/NZ.

Complete Treaty Settlement Training and develop induction module for new people.

Launch further Te Reo modules and conversation groups for practice and embedding the learning.

Success indicators

Using Mana Aki evaluation approach with pre & post-delivery activities.

Feedback in our quarterly survey.

Increased uptake of our Te Reo attestation allowance.