To ensure the actual practice of equality, integrating this principle into the cooperative's mission and values. This is the objective of the implementation of an Equality Plan, a process that concludes with the implementation of a whole series of measures to promote equality between women and men within a company. Supporting and advising companies to carry out these processes is one of Andaira's commitments, which includes not only the implementation of the plan but also helping the interested teams to apply for the subsidy offered by the Women's Institute.

This was the case of the cooperative Codenta, Codenta is a company dedicated to dentistry and has a number of dental clinics. Codenta asked us to assists Andaira in applying for the grant for SMEs to be able to set up their own plan. Once the grant was awarded, we got down to work. The first step was to to know the state of playThe following questions were asked: review of internal documents, company policy, measures, available information, etc., but also staff perceptions of these issues, for which a questionnaire was carried out.

This collection of information allowed us to make a diagnosis of the situation and be able to move on to the next stage, from proposal for measures and actions. These include staff training on the gender perspective, work-life balance and co-responsibility. Also, the dissemination of information on the measures available to them, as one of the results of the diagnosis was that there was a widespread lack of knowledge on these issues among male and female employees. Likewise, work-life balance measures have been incorporated into corporate documents, and the internal rules and regulations have been updated accordingly. Finally, we have presented the company with a document with a set of actions and measures that can help to improve work-life balance, which Codenta is assessing.

In short, the implementation of an Equality Plan is a very beneficial measure for both the company and the staff. If you are interested in developing an Equality Plan in your SME, do not miss this opportunity: has just been released the call for proposals of the Women's Institute for 2015 and from Andaira we can support you in the presentation.