Recent recommendations from the government have suggested that businesses will need to publish a report on their ethnicity pay gap. The proposal would work in a similar way to this year’s gender pay gap requirements, meaning employers would need to calculate the difference in pay between employees of different ethnicities and publish these figures online for the public to see. The idea behind this recommendation is that it will encourage greater progression of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) employees within the workplace, and with this in mind, there are a number of practical measures your client can take to improve diversity in their own business.
Firstly, your client should make sure they take an open and considered approach to their recruitment process, particularly when it comes to advertising vacant positions, taking care to use as many platforms as possible to guarantee a diverse range of applicants. Additionally, they may consider introducing ‘blind recruitment’, thereby automatically removing all personal identification information from job applications, such as names, which can often be an indication of racial or ethnic origin. This process should help avoid the existence of unconscious bias in the recruitment process and increase the chances of more BAME individuals reaching the interview stage.
During the interview process itself, it is advisable that your client ensures multiple interviewers are present to prevent any further bias in decision making, whilst also refraining from asking any unnecessary questions regarding a prospective employee’s race or ethnic background. When making hiring decisions your client should use a pre-determined checklist of required skills and experience to make sure they are choosing the right person regardless of their ethnicity. However, it is possible to base a recruitment decision on a person’s race when faced with two candidates of equal merit, if a certain race is underrepresented in their business. This is known as positive action.
This same unbiased approach should also be used to ensure the internal progression of BAME individuals, specifically when it relates to pay rises and promotional opportunities. Decisions on these matters should also be based on a number of pre-determined factors such as the employee’s experience and performance levels.
The proposed ethnicity pay gap report represents part of continued efforts to improve the protection of individuals in the workplace. Your client is wise to want to take a proactive approach to this situation and should take time to review their existing practices and consider how these could be amended to improve the progression of ethnic minorities.
Please share this article with your clients
