The University of Geneva has earned the EDGE Certification at the first level of certification – EDGE Assess, making it the first university in the world to receive this recognition. The institution was also awarded an EDGEplus Certification, recognizing its commitment to analyzing, through an employee survey, intersectional issues between gender and gender identity, minority status, working with a disability, and LGBTQI+.
“I am delighted with this certification, which will enable us to meet the new legal requirements in terms of equal pay and affirm our commitment to equality and diversity for all our staff” says Yves Flückiger, Rector of the University of Geneva, who has been committed to equal pay for many years and has contributed to the development of the necessary tools for these analyses.
The EDGE Certification process involved a robust third-party review of the institution’s representation across the pipeline, pay equity, effectiveness of policies and practices, and inclusiveness of the culture. It resulted from a thorough and rigorous review of the institution’s statistical data, policies and practices, as well as an evaluation of employee’s experiences through an employee survey – all of which was disaggregated between academic and administrative staff to reflect the realities of each body of staff.
The EDGE Assess Certification level of the University of Geneva recognizes that the principle of equal pay for equivalent work is upheld, that there is a robust framework of policies and practices to promote flexibility for all, an inclusive institutional culture, and that employees are aligned behind the importance of gender equality, diversity, equity, and inclusion for their institution to achieve its mission.
“As an alumnus of this institution, I am particularly proud that the University of Geneva has become the first university in the world to become EDGE Assess Certified and we hope that many more will follow”, comments Aniela Unguresan, Co-Founder of EDGE Certified Foundation. “Universities have a crucial role to play in creating gender-balanced pools of talents across all disciplines and there is no better place to start than by focusing to foster that gender balanced, diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace inside the institution itself”.
To accelerate its progress from this first level of certification to the next ones, the University of Geneva committed to a high-impact action plan approved by and fully supported by the Rectorate. A distinctive feature of the EDGE Certification process and an integral part of it, the institution’s EDGE action plan include commitments to continue ensuring the proactive management of pay equity, to expand the recruitment channels and increase the diversity of the candidate pools especially for the academic staff, to extend current mentoring programmes, to better support the careers of the female faculty members, and to encourage men to make use of the paternity leave available to them.
ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF GENEVA:
The University of Geneva (UNIGE) enjoys worldwide recognition and ranks amongst the top 100 best universities in the world. Founded in 1559 by Jean Calvin and Theodore de Beze, it welcomes nearly 19 000 students in its nine faculties and thirteen interdisciplinary centres and constantly strengthens its links with the International and Non-Governmental Organisations based in Geneva, one of the world’s capitals for multilateralism. A member of the League of European Research-intensive Universities, the UNIGE fulfils three missions: education, research and knowledge sharing.
ABOUT EDGE CERTIFICATION:
EDGE is the leading global assessment and business certification for gender and intersectional equity. EDGE Certification involves a rigorous third-party review of representation across the pipeline, pay equity, effectiveness of policies and practices, and inclusiveness of an organization’s culture. As an integral part of the assessment, statistical data is analysed, policies and practices are reviewed and employees’ experiences of career development opportunities in the current workplace are accounted for. Depending on the specific results of each organization, an action plan is formulated, and firm commitments towards its implementation.
EDGE Certification meets organizations where they are in their gender balance journey (EDGE) and in their intersectional equity journey (EDGEplus) through its three levels of certification: Assess, Move and Lead. A certification at the EDGE Assess level recognizes commitment, one at the EDGE Move level showcases progress and a certification at the EDGE Lead level celebrates success in fostering gender equitable workplaces. An EDGEplus certification further recognizing its commitment to analyzing intersectional issues between gender and one or several of the following additional dimensions: gender identity, race/ethnicity, LGBTQI+, working with a disability, and age.
EDGE Certification is built around the independent third-party certification of data and information and is distinguished by its rigour and focus on impact granted by one of the EDGE accredited independent third-party certification bodies – SGS, Intertek or FloCert, it remains valid for a period of two years. EDGE’s current customer base consists of over 200 large organizations in 50 countries across five continents, representing 30 different industries.
