Sex - Staff Monitoring Report 2021/22

Sex 2021/22

Our current staff records only collect binary sex data (male, female)

Proportion of men and women in 2021/22

Pie chart showing the proportion of staff by sex. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Proportion of men and women (as at 31st July 2022)
Sex	%
Female	62.7%
Male	37.3%

Women make up the majority of the workforce.

Scope: All Staff (please see inclusion/exclusion table)

Snapshot date: 31st July 2022 (Academic Year 2021/22)

Proportion of men and women over five years

Line chart showing the proportion of women and men across five academic years. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Proportion of the population by Sex
Year	% Female	% Male
2017/18	60.3%	39.7%
2018/19	60.6%	39.4%
2019/20	61.3%	38.7%
2020/21	62.1%	37.9%
2021/22	62.7%	37.3%

The workforce remained predominantly female throughout the period.

Snapshot date(s): 2017/18 to 2021/22 as at 31st July of each year.

Scope: All Staff – Academic Staff (Central, Regional, Researcher & ALs) and Professional & Support Staff – data does not include OU subsidiaries (OUSA, OUW, Mulberry Bear) or agency/temp workers.

Sex by Employee Group

Stacked bar chart comparing the sex composition of Academic Staff and Professional & Support Staff. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Proportion of men and women by Employee group
Employee Group	% Woman	% Man
Academic Staff	59.0%	41.0%
Professional & Support Staff	67.8%	32.2%

Both employee groups are predominantly female.

Snapshot date(s): 2021/22 (as at 31st July 2022)

Scope: All Staff –Academic Staff (Central, Regional, Researcher & ALs) and Professional & Support Staff –data does not include OU subsidiaries (OUSA, OUW, Mulberry Bear) or agency/temp workers.

Sex by Employee Subgroup

Stacked bar chart showing the sex composition of six employee subgroups, split between Academic Staff and Professional & Support Staff. A dotted outline groups Associate Lecturers, Central Academic Staff, Regional Academic Staff and Research Staff together as Academic Staff, while Academic Related Staff and Support Staff are shown separately as Professional & Support Staff. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Employee Subgroup by Sex
Employee Subgroup	% Woman	% Man
Associate Lecturer	59.4%	40.6%
Central Academic Staff	54.7%	45.3%
Regional Academic Staff	74.2%	25.8%
Research Staff	43.2%	56.8%
Academic Related Staff	66.0%	34.0%
Support Staff	70.1%	29.9%

Women are the majority in most employee subgroups.

Snapshot date(s): 2021/22 (as at 31st July 2022)

Scope: All Staff –Academic Staff (Central, Regional, Researcher & ALs) and Professional & Support Staff –data does not include OU subsidiaries (OUSA, OUW, Mulberry Bear) or agency/temp workers.

Representation of women at senior level

There has been continual upward progress in improving the proportion of women in senior roles with women now accounting for 47.9% of senior staff, the highest representation in 5 years. Women are underrepresented in the professor bands particularly in Professor Band 2 (women in PB1 =43.0%; PB2= 34.1%, PB3=42.9%).

Bar chart showing woman representation at senior level across five academic years, with a target marker of 45% shown alongside the most recent year. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Representation of women at senior level – 5 years
Year	% Female
2017/18	40.4%
2018/19	42.0%
2019/20	44.5%
2020/21	46.2%
2021/22	47.9%

Female representation at senior level increased steadily throughout the period and exceeded the target in the most recent year shown.

Bar chart comparing female representation across the PB1-PB3 and SS0-SS5 senior grade groups. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Representation of women at senior level by grade group – 2021/22
Year	% Female
PB1-PB3	40.5%
SS0-SS5	56.9%

Women are represented in both senior grade groups, with a higher level of representation in the SS0-SS5 grade group than in the PB1-PB3 grade group.

Snapshot date(s): 2017/18 to 2021/22 as at 31st July of each year (above chart) | 2021/22 (as at 31stJuly 2022; below chart)

Scope: Staff with ‘SS’ (Senior Staff) grades or ‘PB’ (Professor) grades

Parental Leave and Return Rate

Over the past three years, 340 employees have taken parental leave, led largely by maternity leave uptake. The large majority of people whose parental leave ended on or before 31stJuly 2022 have returned and continue to work at the OU. The maternity return rate (94%) is slightly lower than other parental leave types.

Bar chart showing the number of people who took parental leave by type of leave. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

The number of people who have taken parental leave over the last 3 years (1st August 2019 –31st July 2022)
Type of parental leave	Number of staff
Maternity	237
Paternity	95
SPL	11
Adoption	5

Majority of staff taking parental leave are maternity leave.

Bar chart showing the proportion of staff who returned to work after parental leave by type of leave. Details in the data table available after this graphic.

Return Rate: the number of who have returned from parental leave and continue to work at the OU
Type of parental leave	% returned to work
Maternity	94%
Paternity	96%
SPL	100%
Adoption	100%

Almost all staff who went on parental leave returned to work.

Return rate is based on employees whose expected parental leave return date ended within the reporting period (on or before 31st July 2022). Staff who are still on parental leave have not been included in the return rate.

Snapshot date(s): data captures parental leave start dates that fall anywhere between 1stAugust 2019 to 31st July 2022.

Scope: All Staff –Academic Staff (Central, Regional, Researcher & ALs) and Professional & Support Staff –data does not include OU subsidiaries (OUSA, OUW, Mulberry Bear) or agency/temp workers.