MORE REPRESENTATION MEANS ACCESS TO A MORE VARIED POOL OF PERSPECTIVES.

If one of the reasons for taking diversity and inclusion seriously is to increase the likelihood that the right people are in the room, we may need to be more deliberate about what certain lived experiences or perspectives are missing and whether our current markers of diversity enable us to address those gaps. We offer two examples of other markers that might be considered:

1. The area of qualifications or the way someone entered the workforce (for example, directly from secondary education or via tertiary education) will have shaped their worldview and their approach to problem solving. Science emphasises logic and experimentation, arts promote creativity and critical thinking, trades require practical skills and craftsmanship. Using qualification type or level as a marker may be one way of increasing diversity of thought.

Source: Public Service Commission and Stats NZ

The census also showed that 9.8 percent of public servants identify with a sexual minority (bisexual, gay, lesbian, or other sexual minority). This compares with around 5 percent of the general population.

In 2022, 62.1 percent of the public workforce were women, with 55.8 percent of senior leadership roles held by women, and those of non-binary genders or multiple genders made up 0.5 percent of the public service. We can be encouraged by the upward trend and

2. The resources someone did or did not have access to during their life, and thus the support or assistance they required, will affect what contribution they’re able to make to discussions about policies and services (for example, on how the public service delivers housing, healthcare, and education services). Using socioeconomic status as a marker of diversity may be one way of using diversity in lived experience to better understand and meet the needs of the public.

The focus on diversity within the public service has evolved, beginning with an apathy towards diversity, moving to an opportunities-based approach regardless of ethnicity or gender, and on to a focus on increasing representation. We have a far more diverse public service now, but there are opportunities for more diversity, which can only contribute to better public services for New Zealand.