Name discrimination in UK job applications
Saeed Pourreza
Press TV, London
For some of you watching, this report might strike a nerve: employment discrimination based on your name, gender or race among other things.
More than a quarter of workers in the UK say they have experienced discrimination in the workplace. But what about people looking for jobs? Does employer bias go that far? Well, when it comes to finding a job in the UK, the name of the game maybe to sound like an English person. In other words, Anglo-Saxon sounding candidates have higher chances of getting call backs.
If you are from a black, Asian or some other minority background, it is likely that your ethnicity will reduce your chances of landing a job or getting a promotion.
The most recent revelation about employment racism came from accomplished Nigerian businesswoman Funke Abimbola, who said her African name stopped her getting job opportunities.
"I had to make over a 100 phone calls," she told reporters, "to get a foot in the door."
Politicians talk about shortages in the workforce in different industries, but when it comes to employing people to meet those shortages, qualified individuals with ethnic names, could end up getting the short end of the stick. And with employers having the upper-hand, job applicants say it is difficult to prove employment discrimination.
First published in 2017, a report by the Parker Review Committee, formed to consult on the ethnic diversity of company boards, said about a third of FTSE 100 companies have no ethnic minority representation on their boards. And that 31 of the 83 firms which provided relevant information fell into that category.
When it comes to employment in the UK, there's a glass ceiling that has remained unseen for a long time.
Experts are now saying that Generation Z, the demographic cohort succeeding the Millennials can see that unacknowledged barrier to advancement in a profession and want to take a hammer to it. Yet others say, this isn’t just about stopping discrimination, it’s about actively promoting inclusion.
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