Theresa May wants ethnicity pay reporting to tackle discrimination

Prime Minister Theresa May has announced plans for a series of measures to remove the barriers facing ethnic minorities in the workplace

Mrs May has launched a consultation on ethnicity pay reporting in response to the recent Race Disparity Audit, which revealed significant disparities in the pay and progression of ethnic minority employees compared to their white counterparts.

In the first consultation of its kind, the government will invite employers to share their views on a mandatory approach to ethnicity pay reporting, since the number of organisations publishing information on the issue voluntarily remains low.

The consultation will run until January 2019.

Mrs May also wants to establish a pioneering Race at Work Charter, which will commit businesses to a set of principles and actions designed to drive forward a step-change in the recruitment and progression of ethnic minority employees.

Major organisations including NHS England, Standard Life Aberdeen, Norton Rose Fulbright, Saatchi & Saatchi, KPMG, RBS, the Civil Service and WPP are among the early signatories.

Mrs May said: “Every employee deserves the opportunity to progress and fulfil their potential in their chosen field, regardless of which background they are from, but too often ethnic minority employees feel they’re hitting a brick wall when it comes to career progression.

“That’s why I’m delighted to launch the Race at Work Charter, which gives businesses a clear set of actions to work towards in helping to create greater opportunities for ethnic minority employees at work.

“Our focus is now on making sure the UK’s organisations, boardrooms and senior management teams are truly reflective of the workplaces they manage, and the measures we are taking today will help employers identify the actions needed to create a fairer and more diverse workforce.”

Leading employment lawyers say the new measures could lead to a flood of tribunal claims relating to unequal pay and race discrimination.

Please contact Sorcha Monaghan if you would like more information about the issues raised in this article or any aspect of employment law.