Ethnic bias in labour market studied

Work has begun on a project sponsored by cabinet office minister Barbara Roche which will examine the complex issues surrounding ethnic minority unemployment, access to skills and training and progression thereafter. Policy recommendations can be expected in Spring 2002.

Roche said that it is "widely acknowledged" that some ethnic minority groups are disadvantaged in the labour market. "The project will vigorously examine some of the underlying factors such as education, gender, geographical location, employment by sector, economics and social class, which can affect progression in the labour market. It will look at the complex pattern of ethnic differences and also be able to make recommendations for a fresh approach to policy making."

Gurbux Singh, chair of the Commission for Racial Equality, welcomed the project, saying: "The time is right to thoroughly expose the barriers which prevent equal opportunity."

Evidence shows that ethnic minority unemployment has remained around twice that of the white population throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Labour Force Survey figures for spring 2001 show that the ILO unemployment rate for white males was 4.9%, while for Bangladeshi men it was 19%, for black Caribbeans 16.2% and for Pakistanis 15.4%.

Among women the ILO unemployment rate was 3.8% for white females, 18.9% for Bangladeshis, 15.2% for black Africans and 11.4% for black Caribbeans.