Work and education The Commission continued to advocate for fair and equitable employment for all New Zealand workers. We assessed how well public service departments are doing to meet the “good employer“ requirements specified in the State Sector Act 1988 including the steps they are taking to provide an equal employment opportunities programme which targets women, Māori, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities. The Commission profiled five departments that have excelled in one or more of these target areas and shared this good practice in a discussion document called What’s Working: Improving Equal Employment Opportunities in the Public Service. We also conducted our annual review of the reporting of “good employer” obligations by Crown entities. All Crown entities were provided with an indicator report tracking their progress towards delivering equal employment opportunities (EEO). For the first time the reports were provided on-line which enables Crown entities to see at a glance an easily understood dashboard report, track their progress over time, and compare themselves to other Crown entities of the same size, type, and the sector as a whole. Good practice advice provided by the Commission was acted on by a number of Crown entities. Several systemic changes in relation to pay and employment equity were achieved in public service agencies following targeted advice and guidance on how to reduce structural discrimination in employment. Violence and abuse We focused on reducing violence in secondary schools and against women, children people with disabilities and people in state care. The Commission participated in the cross-sector Bullying Prevention Advisory Group, convened by the Secretary for Education. The group aims to highlight what schools and communities can do about bullying and harassment and provide information to help young people, parents, whānau and communities. The Commission provided expert advice to the group and stressed the importance of schools practicing inclusive values and encouraging respect for diversity. During the year, we also drew attention to other issues relating to violence and abuse. This included presentations, speeches and an online blog by the Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) Commissioner on topics such as violence against women and children, ethnic and religious minorities and transgender people, as well as the funding of specialist sexual violence social services. 22 Human Rights Commission