Equinet Working Groups
Much of Equinet’s work takes place in thematic working groups, which bring together expert staff from equality bodies across Europe to share experience and good practice. Each member organisation can nominate one staff member and one alternate staff member per working group.
There are currently five Equinet working groups focusing on:
- Gender Equality
- Policy Formation
- Equality Law
- Communication Strategies and Practices
- Research and Data Collection
Members of these working groups work closely together on the implementation of a work plan which is adopted by the Equinet General Assembly every year. It is proposed by the Equinet Board, with inputs from the working group members themselves. The working group members meet and communicate with each other regularly (the default frequency is two meetings annually for each working group, with electronic communication between meetings) in order to share their experiences and good practices and discuss questions relevant to their field of work. This process provides an opportunity for peer learning and at the same time helps Equinet to collect and produce facts-based information from its members and thematic reports relating to their work.
Position and role of Working Group Moderator
Each Working Group is coordinated by a Moderator who is an expert of one of the Equinet Member organizations with a commitment to and broad knowledge in the field of focus of the related Working Group. There is a preference for the Moderator of the Policy Formation Working Group to be a member of the Equinet Board if possible.
Each Working Group shall have a member of the Equinet Board as a liaison person who is regularly updated by the Moderator about the activities of the Working Group and can pass on such information to the whole of the Equinet Board.
The position of Working Group Moderator is voluntary and unpaid. Indicatively, Moderators are generally expected to dedicate around 10 days a year to their Working Group.
The role of the Moderator is to lead the development of the detailed annual plan of activities for the working group and support its rolling out in close collaboration with the working group members, the Equinet Secretariat and the Equinet Board. This detailed plan of activities will also take into account the objectives set out in the Annual Work Plan of Equinet (approved by Members at the AGM) for the year and the four-year Strategic Plan.
Among other duties, the Moderator will:
- Facilitate an efficient and comprehensive communication and exchange of knowledge, expertise and experience within the working group, ensuring that all members get a fair chance to contribute and share their views;
- Encourage and ensure ongoing engagement and active contribution by all working group members to the work and activities of the group;
- Facilitate the repartition of the different tasks and the workload between the members of the working group;
- Contribute to conceptualising any output of the working group and drafting parts of it as appropriate;
- Ensure the efficient and timely production of any output foreseen in the yearly work plan for the working group, in cooperation with the Equinet Secretariat;
- Represent the working group in external meetings and other Equinet meetings as appropriate and agreed with the Equinet Secretariat;
- Coordinate the longer-term planning of activities of the working group and the identification of strategic opportunities.
Nomination of the Working Group Moderator
The moderator is a member of staff of one of the Equinet member equality bodies and is appointed by the Equinet Board for the renewable term of 2 years, with a maximum of two terms.
Equinet member equality bodies will be invited to nominate a staff member for the position of moderator for the specific working group of which they are a member. An equality body can nominate a moderator for a maximum of two working groups. The nomination has to include a short CV of the candidate, a brief description of their motivation to lead the working group and a statement from the head of the equality body agreeing to their candidacy and the eventual working time to be dedicated to the moderator function. At the start of their term the moderator has to hold a minimum one-year experience, having attended minimum two meetings since joining the working group and one meeting during the last year, as a member of the working group in question. The only exception is the Policy Formation WG, where the moderator should preferably be a member of the Executive Board.
Members of the working group are consulted anonymously to assess the applications received for the moderator function and select their preferred candidate. The working group’s preference is communicated to the Equinet Board.
The Equinet Board appoints moderators with a simple majority following a review of the candidacies. The decision on appointment shall include a justification and explanation in case of deviating from the expressed preference of the working group. If there is a request for it, the Equinet Board may decide to appoint two candidates as co-moderators.
Evaluation of the Working Group
Members of the working group will be consulted anonymously on an annual basis to assess the workings of the working group, including secretariat and moderator support and overall engagement of members. The results of this assessment are shared with the Equinet Board, flagging in particular any serious issues, complaints or concerns raised.
Termination of the moderator function
The Equinet Board may decide to terminate the appointment of the moderator on grounds of substantiated and grave complaints against the moderator, including complaints communicated through the annual assessment of the moderator’s performance, or if they deem that due to the moderator’s actionable conduct there is an immediate and real risk of not delivering the outputs included in the work plan.
Responsibilities linked to the moderator function will be automatically terminated when the person is no longer working at the equality body (as an employee and/or in an elected function).
In case of termination, the Equinet Board may appoint an acting moderator for the remainder of the year if it deems this necessary for the good delivery of the work plan. The acting moderator is appointed in a simplified procedure, following a proposal by the Equinet Secretariat and in consultation with the equality body of the proposed acting moderator.