Equal resource allocation at SLU’s departments

Last changed: 17 September 2023

Sometimes, a working method, which in itself appears neutral, can entrench or strengthen gender inequality. To counter this when it comes to resource allocation, organisations can work with so-called gender budgeting. SLU has developed a model for a gender equal resource allocation that consists of information gathering, analysis and action.

Model for gender equal resource allocation

The model serves as a starting point to find a method useful to the departments’ allocation work of funding to individual teachers/researchers and research teams.

An individual teacher’s/researcher’s working hours and funding often consists of several different components: direct government funding for research, research grants, teaching hours, study directorship, etc. The various components, who receives what and how much, can entrench or change gender inequality.

The department’s allocation/budgetary work

A key to success in integrating gender equality into an activity is to find a simple model that can be hooked on to existing processes. SLU’s model for gender equal resource allocation at the departments therefore hooks on to the department’s annual budgetary work. As part of the budgetary prerequisites that are sent out in October every year to heads of departments and decision support, a memorandum/instruction (”Jämställd resursfördelning på SLU:s institutioner”) is included. The department will then briefly note an answer to question 4 below in its budget comment. This question is preceded by questions 1­–3 where information is gathered in special reports from LINS (SLU’s management information system).

All three reports comprise the position categories professors, senior lecturers, career-development employees, lecturers, other researching and teaching staff and doctoral students.

Questions in budgeting prior to the upcoming year:

  1. What is the distribution between men and women in various position categories?
    LINS report: Full-year employee distribution, women/men
  2. How are the wage costs and full-year employees distributed between women and men at the department?
    LINS report: Distribution of wage costs and full-year employees, women/men
  3. What does the distribution of research funding, grants and aid look like between women and men at the institution?
    LINS report: Distribution of research funding grants/aid, women/men
  4. Conclusion: What significance can the answers to the questions above have in the budget for the upcoming year? (To be noted in budget comment.)

To help in reflection, the questions below can be answered. The faculty’s JLV officer can also serve as support in the department’s analysis.

  • Given the data presented on gender balance and resource allocation, what would have been the expected outcome? What do you think about what you see?
  • Repeat the question “why”. Example: Why does it look a certain way? / Because more doctoral students who are men teach. / Why are there more doctoral students who are men who teach?
  • How do you view the skills provisioning plans?
  • Is there anything you need to bring up and highlight in the budget dialogue with the dean? The situation at an individual department may be closely related to the situation at the faculty/university, etc.
  • What (if anything) needs to change, be reorganised, be done differently?
  • What norms and values need to be challenged and managed to make this possible?