You might have heard of the gender pay gap. Less well known is the ethnicity pay gap.
If you are paid less (or otherwise disadvantaged at work) because of your race, you can make a claim for race discrimination.
What the data shows
Surveys show that black people are most likely to have a household income below £400 per week and have the highest unemployment rate, while Bangladeshi households are most likely to claim income-related benefits.
Pay gap data can reflect inequalities around education and opportunity. Also, certain ethnic groups cluster around low-paid industries – for example, black workers are more likely to be agency staff.
However, when there’s a difference in pay levels between people from different ethnic backgrounds who have the same qualifications and do identical jobs in the same geographical area, racism may be the reason.
The problem can last throughout a person’s career.
Starting out
In 2018, the Resolution Foundation found that black male graduates were paid 17% less than their white counterparts, while black female graduates were paid 9% less.
Top jobs
The government has set a target for every board to have at least one BAME (Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic) person from 2021.
Yet, according to a recent report by DiversityQ, white males hold 84% of executive directorships and 62% of board positions. Fewer than one in ten FTSE 100 directors are BAME. Of 100,000 employees in the fund management sector, 10% identify as Asian and 1% as black, including only 13 portfolio managers.
Home ownership
The 2017/18 English Housing Survey shows 63% of families in England own property. By ethnicity, that includes almost 74% Indian households and 68% white British, but only 17% of Arabs and 20% of black Africans.
One explanation is that ethnicities with a younger demographic tend to live in cities – with higher urban living costs, it’s harder for them to build up wealth.
Pensioners
A recent report by the Runnymede Trust found that, for every £1 in savings, investments, pensions and assets accrued by a white British household, black African households have wealth worth around 20p and Bangladeshi households have half that.
Between 2015-18, black pensioners had lower incomes than other groups and were most likely to receive benefits on top of the state pension.
What this means to you
Currently, only 11% of companies publish ethnicity pay reports, despite calls for such disclosure to be made mandatory.
If you are a person of colour, be aware that you mustn’t be discriminated against in the recruitment or promotion process.
If the pay gap is due to your ethnicity, it’s not covered by equal pay legislation. Rather, when you can prove that someone else in your company is paid more than you for equivalent work, you can bring a claim for race discrimination.
As employment lawyers, we can help you with that.
Related reading
- Race discrimination
- Race discrimination at work
- When does race discrimination occur?
- Race discrimination. Has it happened to you?
Make an Enquiry Now
To make a FREE enquiry based on any of the issues raised on this page call us on 0808 168 7288, or complete an Online Enquiry.
We have already helped thousands of people to win millions of pounds in compensation.
We will also discuss the best methods of funding your case and seek to reach a solution that best suits your needs. This can involve a “no-win, no-fee” agreement if appropriate.