Dimension: 5.2.2: Workplace environment
This dimension concerns parliament’s practices and arrangements for creating an inclusive workplace environment. A positive and inclusive workplace can contribute to more effective performance by MPs, parliamentary staff and parliament as a whole.
Parliament Parliament A national body of elected (or sometimes appointed) representatives that makes laws, debates issues and holds the government to account. has an obligation to ensure the health and safety of MPs and staff, as well as of visitors. It is also required to provide a safe and functional workplace for MPs and staff with disabilities that is well-adapted to their needs. This includes accessible parliamentary facilities and access to information.
Many MPs and staff have significant family-related responsibilities that they need to balance with their work commitments, such as caring for infants, children, elderly relatives or others. It is therefore essential for parliament to provide a family-friendly environment, with supporting institutional procedures and practices. These can include the following:
- Setting family-friendly sitting hours and session periods
- Supporting remote work, including provisions on attendance and voting
- Allowing MPs to take infants into the chamber during votes
- Pairing MPs in votes or allowing them to cast proxy votes
- Providing family-friendly facilities and services, such as breastfeeding spaces, spaces for family members, and childcare facilities
See also Dimension 3.3.2: Access for persons with disabilities.
Aspiring goal
Assess your parliament against this dimension
Assessment criteria
No 1: Health and safety
The legal framework requires parliament to ensure the health and safety of MPs, staff and visitors to parliament. Health and safety policies and regulations are subject to regular monitoring and evaluation.
No 2: MPs and staff with disabilities
Parliament provides a safe and functional workplace for MPs and staff with disabilities.
No 3: Breastfeeding or caring for young children
Parliament’s rules of procedure enable MPs who are breastfeeding or caring for young children to fulfil their parliamentary duties, including voting.
No 4: Family-friendly facilities and services
Parliament provides family-friendly facilities and services for MPs and staff, such as breastfeeding spaces, spaces for family members, and childcare facilities.
No 5: Work-life balance
Parliament takes measures to facilitate work-life balance for MPs and staff, including predictable sitting hours and session periods, flexible working hours, and opportunities for virtual participation and remote working.
How to complete this assessment
This dimension is assessed against several criteria, each of which should be evaluated separately. For each criterion, select one of the six descriptive grades (Non-existent, Rudimentary, Basic, Good, Very good and Excellent) that best reflects the situation in your parliament, and provide details of the evidence on which this assessment is based.
The evidence for assessment of this dimension could include the following:
- Provisions of policies, regulations and/or other measures addressing health, safety and well-being at work
- Provisions of policies, regulations, rules of procedure and/or a code of conduct aimed at preventing and combating sexism, harassment and violence against MPs and staff
- Reports or other information showing evidence that such policies and/or regulations are implemented in practice and subject to regular monitoring and evaluation
- Provisions of parliament’s rules of procedure that have been adapted to allow MPs with family responsibilities to fulfil their parliamentary duties
- Information about family-friendly facilities and services provided by parliament
- Provisions of human resources policies relating to work-life balance
Where relevant, provide additional comments or examples that support the assessment.
Sources and further reading
- Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), Recommended Benchmarks for Democratic Legislatures (2018).
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Toolkit for Mainstreaming and Implementing Gender Equality (2018).
- Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Guidelines for the elimination of sexism, harassment and violence against women in parliament (2019).
- UK Parliament Parliament A national body of elected (or sometimes appointed) representatives that makes laws, debates issues and holds the government to account. , Using the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme (ICGS): guide for complainants.
Get help with this assessment
The assessment of indicators involves diagnosing and considering strengths and weaknesses, i.e. the things parliament is doing well, and the things it could do better or more effectively, taking into account established good practices that are described in the indicators.
Read the assessment guidance to find out what to consider when conducting an assessment against the Indicators. Find out how to prepare, how to set the objectives of the assessment, how to organize the process, and more. Contact the project partners for expert advice.
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