GENDER EQUALITY PLAN (GEP 2024)

Gender Equality Plan enacted by: UMNAI Leadership Team

1       Introduction

UMNAI Ltd is a deep-tech company based in Malta, offering fundamentally innovative solutions in Explainable Artificial Intelligence. UMNAI’s Explainable AI (XAI) technology is changing how AI is conceived, designed, applied and consumed and is positively disrupting the AI industry. UMNAI has invented a new Neuro-Symbolic Explainable AI Architecture. This breakthrough technology bridges the gap between what black-box AI can’t do and what the market needs AI to do. It is a deep, enabling technology that solves a myriad of pains and expands AI into new frontiers. Backed by over 20 patents, our technology is built on proprietary methods that can create fully-explainable and interpretable white-box models to build better automated decision-making systems that take advantage of explainable AI.

The company has a core team consisting of two Co-CEOs, Chief Legal Officer (CLO) and Chief Technology Officer (CTO), together with AI & Data Science Researchers, Product Developers, Project Managers, and an IT and Commercial Team. The company also collaborates with a network of experts around the world, who are professionals in the fields of AI, Ethics and other areas of interest. UMNAI is also driving the standardisation of AI as appointed national representatives at ISO/IEC and CEN/CENELEC standardisation bodies.

UMNAI’s Leadership Team created this Gender Equality Plan (GEP) for UMNAI Ltd. Currently, UMNAI Ltd has committed to following the five main thematic areas covered by GEPs and has practices in place that are aligned with Maltese Legislation. The extent of these practices is covered within this document.

Prior to the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, UMNAI Ltd only allowed limited remote working to cater to individual needs. The company always believed in encouraging employees to be independent and proactive, and nurtured an open-door culture, where employees were encouraged to communicate with each other and with management about any queries or issues. Throughout 2020, UMNAI Ltd’s management transitioned the company to fully-remote working, and these values were adapted and implemented to fit this change. As the need to be fully-remote diminishes with subsequent waves of the pandemic, UMNAI Ltd. has a flexible mixed on-site / remote approach. This caters to the differing needs of employees and allows UMNAI Ltd to maintain our values using the lessons learned throughout the pandemic.

2       Thematic Areas

The principles covering the recommended five areas of the GEP, as highlighted in the Horizon Europe Guidance on Gender Equality Plans document, can be found below.

2.1       Work-life balance and organisational culture

The provision of good working conditions for all staff which allow both men and women to have the flexibility for a healthy work-life balance to reach optimal performance levels. UMNAI Ltd offers the following to all employees:

  • Fully remote working

  • Annual leave

  • Sick leave

  • Option to work reduced hours, where possible

  • Flexible working time arrangements, including how departmental processes, procedures and practices impact on staff with caring responsibilities or full-time reduced workers

  • Workload management, including how different tasks are allocated and distributed

  • Advice and support on work-life balance

In addition to the above, UMNAI Ltd follows all regulations as outlined in the Employment and Industrial Relations Act (Cap. 452 of the Laws of Malta) and subsidiary legislation (Organisation of Working Time Regulations – SL 452.87), and subsidiary legislation (Work Place (Minimum Health and Safety Requirements) Regulations – SL 424.15).

2.2       Gender equality in recruitment and career progression

Gender balance in recruitment and career progression ensures equal opportunities at the stage of recruitment and subsequent career progression for any staff.

  • UMNAI Ltd’s recruitment strategy includes recruitment agencies, web and social media posts, word of mouth and internal recommendations

  • The selection process is based on the relevance of qualifications and experience to the role, and whether the potential employee is happy to accept the terms of the role

  • UMNAI Ltd also prefers to receive a standardised curriculum vitae in Europass format, further equalising the interpretation of curriculum vitae

All new employees are given the same terms, introduction and relevant training when joining the company. In terms of career progression, any employee is judged based on their performance in their current role, their understanding of the company and the way they conduct themselves with all colleagues.

UMNAI Ltd follows the principles that are highlighted in the Employment and Industrial Relations Act (Cap. 452 of the Laws of Malta) and subsidiary legislation (Equal Treatment in Employment Regulations – SL 452.95).

2.3       Integration of gender dimension into content and communication

UMNAI Ltd is committed to ensuring that all its processes and communication are gender-neutral in both intention and the language used. The purpose of gender-neutral language is to encourage employees to give due consideration to the issue of gender sensitivity in language whenever writing or speaking.

2.4       Measures against gender-based violence including sexual harassment

UMNAI Ltd believes in non-discriminatory treatment based on the grounds of religion or religious belief, disability, age, sex, sexual orientation, political orientation and racial or ethnic origin. As a partially-remote company with employees who sometimes communicate solely through video calls, email and business platforms, the focus is to encourage respect, trust and camaraderie amongst colleagues.

UMNAI Ltd follows principles highlighted in the Employment and Industrial Relations Act (Cap. 452 of the Laws of Malta) and subsidiary legislation (Equal Treatment in Employment Regulations – SL 452.95), the Equality for Men and Women Act (Cap. 456 of the Laws of Malta), and the Gender Identity, Gender Expression and Sex Characteristics Act (Cap. 540 of the Laws of Malta).

3       Challenges and Objectives

The challenges related to gender equality and diversity were identified and discussed by UMNAI Ltd’s Managing Director and General Manager. The company was founded  in 2019 and, since then, management has been directly involved in all aspects of the company, including marketing, HR and recruitment, making it possible for them to pinpoint the challenges and objectives found below.

3.1       Challenge 1: Encouraging employees to use all their annual leave in order to have a better work-life balance

Thematic Area: Work-life balance & organisational culture

Goal: Encouraging employees to use all their annual leave

Challenge: To push employees to book leave is challenging due to everyone working remotely

Target Date: End of 2024

Person Responsible: CEO and Head of Operations

Action Plan: To regularly remind employees to make use of their annual leave to ensure a proper work-life balance.

3.2       Challenge 2: Using gender neutral language across all communication

Thematic Area: Integration of gender dimensions

Goal: Using gender neutral language across all communication

Challenge: Ensuring all employees implement gender neutral language across all communication

Target Date: End of 2024

Person Responsible: All staff

Action Plan: Circulating this gender equality plan amongst all employees and also sharing the document Gender-Neutral Language in the European Parliament, whilst encouraging all employees to read and implement the contents. This is to ensure that all internal and external communication (emails, calls, recruitment efforts, website content, social media content etc) are gender-neutral in both their intention and the language used.

4       Data Collection

4.1       Challenge 1: Encouraging employees to use all their annual leave in order to have a better work-life balance

Use the company’s HR management system to monitor the leave taken and download reports related to this challenge.

4.2       Challenge 2: Using gender-neutral language across all communication

Take random samples of different external communication channels (newsletters, social media, vacancy posts, brochures etc) and check them for the use of gender-neutral language.