Gender Equality Plan

The following information is provided by Astra Labs GmbH about our Gender Equality Plan.

1. Official Endorsement from Senior Management

Astra Labs is unequivocally committed to fostering an inclusive and equitable environment for all its employees, partners, and stakeholders. We believe that excellence and innovation are intrinsically linked to diversity and equality. This Gender Equality Plan (GEP) represents our formal commitment to embedding gender equality into the core of our organizational culture, policies, and research and innovation (R&I) activities.

This plan outlines our strategic objectives and the concrete actions we will undertake to eliminate gender inequality, address unconscious biases, and dismantle systemic structural barriers.

This document is endorsed by the management and founding team of Astra Labs and serves as a guiding framework for all our operations.

Augsburg, July 7, 2025

2. Our Commitment: Foundational Pillars

This GEP is built on four foundational pillars to ensure its effective implementation and long-term success.

Pillar 1: Public Document

This Gender Equality Plan shall be a formal document, publicly available on the Astra Labs website to ensure transparency and accountability to our employees, clients, partners, and the public. It is endorsed by our top management, signifying its importance and our organization-wide commitment.

Pillar 2: Dedicated Resources

Astra Labs has allocated dedicated resources for the implementation, monitoring, and continuous improvement of this plan. This includes:

  • Personnel: Appointment of a Gender Equality Officer/Team responsible for overseeing the GEP's implementation, providing expertise, and acting as a point of contact.
  • Budget: An allocated annual budget to support GEP initiatives, including training, data analysis tools, and awareness campaigns.

Pillar 3: Data Collection and Monitoring

To ensure our actions are evidence-based and impactful, Astra Labs commits to the systematic collection and analysis of sex/gender-disaggregated data.

  • Data Collection: We will collect data annually on our personnel across all levels, including recruitment, promotion, and remuneration. Where applicable (e.g., in user-focused R&I), data will be collected for three gender categories: woman, man, and non-binary.
  • Monitoring and Reporting: An annual internal report will be produced, analyzing key indicators to track progress against our stated targets. A summary of this report will be made public. Key indicators will include:
    • Proportion of women, men, and non-binary individuals in the total workforce and by seniority level.
    • Gender pay gap analysis.
    • Success rates of male, female, and non-binary applicants in recruitment and promotion processes.
    • Data on the uptake of work-life balance policies, disaggregated by gender.

Pillar 4: Training and Awareness-Raising

Astra Labs will implement a continuous training programme for all staff and decision-makers.

  • Mandatory Training: All employees and management will undergo mandatory training on gender equality concepts, unconscious bias, and our GEP commitments.
  • Specialized Training: Tailored training will be provided to staff in key functions such as Human Resources, R&I project management, and leadership. This will focus on gender-fair recruitment, inclusive leadership, and the integration of the gender dimension in R&I content.

3. Thematic Areas: Strategic Objectives and Actions

Our GEP addresses five key thematic areas with concrete measures and targets.

Area 1: Work-Life Balance and Organisational Culture

  • Objective: To create a supportive and flexible work environment that enables all employees, regardless of gender, to balance their professional and personal lives.
  • Actions & Targets:
    • Promote and destigmatize flexible working arrangements (e.g., teleworking, flexible hours) for all genders. Target: Achieve a 20% increase in the uptake of flexible work options by men within two years.
    • Review and enhance parental leave policies to encourage shared parental responsibility, exceeding national statutory requirements where possible.
    • Implement a "right to disconnect" policy to protect personal time.
    • Conduct regular employee surveys to assess organizational culture and identify areas for improvement.

Area 2: Gender Balance in Leadership and Decision-Making

  • Objective: To achieve a fair and equitable representation of all genders in leadership positions and decision-making bodies.
  • Actions & Targets:
    • Establish clear targets for gender representation on the senior management team and in all leadership roles. Target: To have at least 40% representation of women in all leadership and decision-making bodies by 2028.
    • Develop and implement a mentorship and sponsorship programme to support the career progression of women and individuals of other underrepresented genders into leadership roles.
    • Ensure gender balance on all internal committees, including recruitment and promotion panels.

Area 3: Gender Equality in Recruitment and Career Progression

  • Objective: To ensure all recruitment and promotion processes are fair, transparent, and free from gender bias.
  • Actions & Targets:
    • Anonymize CVs at the initial screening stage to mitigate unconscious bias.
    • Mandate that all hiring and promotion committees are gender-balanced and trained in bias awareness.
    • Use gender-neutral language in all job advertisements and internal communications.
    • Actively monitor recruitment and promotion data to identify and address any disparities. Target: Ensure that the success rate of female applicants for promotions is proportional to the pool of qualified internal female candidates.

Area 4: Integration of the Gender Dimension into Research & Innovation (R&I) Content

  • Objective: To systematically integrate sex, gender, and intersectional analysis into our R&I processes to enhance scientific quality, societal relevance, and innovation potential.
  • Actions & Targets:
    • Establish a mandatory "Gender Dimension Review" for all new R&I projects at the proposal and initiation stage. This review will assess whether sex and/or gender analysis is relevant. A justification must be provided for projects where it is deemed non-relevant.
    • Provide researchers with dedicated training and resources on how to conduct sex, gender, and intersectional analysis in our specific field(s) of innovation.
    • Foster interdisciplinary collaboration by connecting our R&I teams with gender experts.
    • Target: By 2028, all of our R&I projects will have formally documented the consideration of the gender dimension, and at least 75% of relevant projects will actively integrate it into their methodology and content.

Area 5: Measures Against Gender-Based Violence, Including Sexual Harassment

  • Objective: To maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards gender-based violence, bullying, and sexual harassment, and to ensure robust procedures for prevention, reporting, and support.
  • Actions & Targets:
    • Implement and regularly communicate a clear policy against all forms of harassment and violence, outlining definitions, reporting mechanisms, and sanctions.
    • Establish multiple, clearly signposted channels for confidential reporting, ensuring victims can report without fear of reprisal.
    • Provide mandatory training for all staff on what constitutes harassment and how to be an active bystander.
    • Ensure a clear and fair investigation process for all complaints, managed by trained personnel. Target: Conduct an annual awareness campaign and achieve a 100% completion rate for mandatory anti-harassment training across the company.

4. Review and Evaluation

This Gender Equality Plan is a living document. Its implementation will be monitored continuously, and its effectiveness will be formally reviewed on an annual basis. This review will be led by the designated Gender Equality Officer/Team and will involve input from employees and management. The plan will be updated and revised based on the findings of these reviews to ensure it remains relevant and effective in achieving our gender equality goals.