Ethnicity and faith in the UK labour market National Equality Panel

1. Ethnicity and faith in the UK labour marketNational Equality Panel

2. 2001/3: High inactivity, despite strong economy • Government priority – to analyse the experiences and achievements of • ethnic minority groups in the labour market – the ‘ethnic penalty’. Employment rates (excluding students) Ethnic minority unemployment rate GB unemployment rate For the first time (Census 2001) able to identify the labour market outcomes by individual ethnic group, highlighting key differences between and within groups “Even after controlling for a range of factors, Indian Muslims remain almost twice as likely to be unemployed as Indian Hindus. Pakistani Muslims are more than three times as likely as Hindus to be unemployed.” Source: Ethnic minorities and the labour market report, Strategy Unit 2003

3. 2003/4: Too many questions… Diversity of race, gender, sexual orientation and disability are not choices but religious affiliation is, therefore: • Is the Pakistani and Bangladeshi stat really a British Muslim stat? • What should we be looking for?...because there isn’t any research! • What is the ideal/optimum employment rate we should consider ‘acceptable’ for a migrant ethnic minority group? • Are we right to only focus on race? • Has religious identity ever been a causal factor in the UK? Answer – Yes. So why has is it never been measured? Saved by the Open Society Institute: ‘look into this question of religion’: • Commissioned the first breakdown of the 2001 Census by religion • Challenged the norm and suggested the possible existence of an additional ‘Muslim penalty’ in the labour market and found: • 68% of British Muslim women are inactive • Four times more likely to be unemployed than their Jewish and Christian counterparts • Even British Muslim university graduates have the lowest employment • Findings included in the 2005 Labour Party Manifesto

4. KEY OSI Graphs – insert!

5. Post 7/7 ‘everyone’s talking about Muslims..’ 2005: ‘Analysis paralysis’ – a lot of focus groups but few answers… 2007/8: Commissioned by the London Development Agency Focus – to analyse if British Muslim women were the most disadvantaged group in the UK labour market; and if so, why. • Exclusive focus: second generation, UK born British Muslim women • For the first time, statistics compiled by generation and religion • Undertook a small-scale study: • interviewed 50 second generation British Muslim women (in work, inactive + unemployed) • assessed attitudes to work, family, career progression • experience of religious discrimination High risk: • Too many unknowns…project was a gamble! • Balance – Ask everyone! Employers, policy officials and academics

6. Interview breakdown – random selection

7. Key findings: Greater disadvantage than anticipated… Inactivity - second generation British Muslim women • 51% of second generation British Muslim women are inactive in the labour market, compared to only 17% of second generation Hindu women • 13% of second generation British Muslim women are unemployed, compared to only 4% of second generation Hindu and Sikh women, and 3% of White women • In 8 of the 9 RDA areas British Muslim women’s inactivity level is higher than their employment level

8. Key findings – perception or fact? • Perception - ‘Muslim men/families do not let Muslim women work’ or ‘they hold Muslim women back’ • Fact - 93% of women not in work want to work and feel supported by families in doing so • Perception – Muslim women want to work only in ‘women-only’ or ‘Muslim-only’ work environments • Fact – 85% want to work in mainstream jobs • Perception – Muslim women will not travel for work • Fact – 93% of women not in work said they were prepared to travel for up to an hour to get to work

9. Key findings: Support and religious discrimination Employment support: • Only 50% of the women interviewed who are not currently in work but wanting to work, had succeeded in gaining job interviews • 78% said they did not get help to improve skills levels or find work from Jobcentre Plus • None of the women we interviewed in work had received help from a Jobcentre DWP estimate that 25-50% of the ethnic minority employment gap is caused by employer discrimination My analysis found: • 23% of Muslim women in work felt they were treated differently or encountered religious discrimination in interviews • 43% of women not in work felt they were treated differently or encountered religious discrimination in interviews • 18% of women in work previously wore the hijab/niqab but could not find work. Stopped wearing the hijab/niqab - all found employment

10. Key findings – valuing education and family • Positive attitudes to education and employment prevail • 22% of British Muslims have no qualifications compared to 29% of general population • 50% go to university compared to 38% of general population • 90% of women in work who do not yet have children, but stated preference to raise children at home and return to work after children entered nursery • 60% of women currently not in work have worked previously - 47% left work to have children • None of the women surveyed had ever accessed formal childcare. Only 28% of women in work stated they would access formal childcare in the future

11. Result – Targeted policies needed Targeted outreach to address high inactivity levels: • Provide clients with job preparation, job-search and career advice • Tackle the multiple barriers to employment to help them find suitable employment Help graduates progress in their careers: • Provide outreach mentoring, internships and soft skills support to increase the number of British Muslim women graduates entering and progressing in employment Work with employers to tackle religious discrimination: • Tackle misconceptions by openly addressing faith in the workplace and the difference between positive action and positive discrimination • Put in place effective measures to support and report cases of religious discrimination, communicating zero tolerance Use public sector’s levers to influence employer behaviour • Faith monitoring and promote greater employment diversity

12. All questions answered…? Never! Implications for the future…now we’re in a downturn… Generational effects and the big picture…inclusion, child poverty, population prosperity… Key next steps: • Equality and Human Rights debate • Assess other EU cities with high ethnic and Muslim populations for comparative analysis, good practice and mapping of the migrant picture