Non-discrimination plan – how to make one

The non-discrimination plan concerns how the employer and their company promote equality and prevent and stop discrimination. The plan may form part of another plan such as the equality plan, occupational safety and health action plan, or the personnel and training plan. 

How to make the non-discrimination plan? 

The first step is to assess the state of equality in the workplace. The general state of equality can be analysed with worker surveys, for example. 

Once the assessment has been completed, the necessary non-discriminatory methods must be developed for recruitment and other decisions concerning the workforce. What kind of measures are needed and how extensive they should be is influenced by both the workplace’s needs and the available resources. 

The plan must be prepared in cooperation with the workers or their representatives. Typically, the union representative (shop steward, luottamusmies) and/or the occupational health and safety representative is selected to participate in the planning.  

The workers’ representatives have the right to know what measures the employer is taking to promote equality in the workplace. If a union representative has not been elected, the representative chosen by the workers (luottamusvaltuutettu, “trusted representative”) to participate in the planning has the same right. The occupational health and safety representative also has the right. 

The plan may not contain sensitive personal data in any form that could be linked to individual employees, including data about ethnicity, beliefs, health, or sexual orientation. The plan may simply concern the general state of equality in the workplace. 

Measures promoting equality 

For example, measures that promote equality may include:  

• preparing instructions for investigating suspected discrimination in the workplace  
• including equality and non-discrimination in worker induction and work community development.  

If the company seeks to carry out positive discrimination on justifying grounds, it is important to state this clearly in the plan to avoid suspicion of unfair treatment. Positive discrimination may take the form of favouring a certain group in recruitment to achieve equality, for example. 

Useful links 

• Oppaita yhdenvertaisuussuunnitteluun (in Finnish; Ministry of Justice) 
• Equality planning (Non-discrimination Ombudsman) 

See also 

• Promote equality – no discrimination 
• Gender equality in the workplace – no discrimination based on gender 
• Equality plans are an important tool for preventing discrimination