More than half of black professional workers in the UK say they have been passed over for promotion because of the colour of their skin and are still underrepresented within British companies new research has revealed.
In a poll of 2,000 workers, nearly 70 percent of those quizzed said their firms had not increased the number of Black, Asian or ethnic minority leaders since the death of George Floyd, a black man who was killed by a police officer which sparked global protests against racism.
Following research commissioned by recruitment company, Zyna Search which specialises in placing black talent in senior roles, founder Marcus Whyte said he was “not shocked” by the stark figures having “been an employee before.”
Despite pledges for change following the Black Lives Matter Movement in 2020, Marcus says there are still no Black CEOs or chairpersons in the FTSE 100.
He said: “So many companies pledged to do better on diversity after George Floyd’s killing. But if we look at the FTSE 100 today, there are no Black CEOs or chairpersons.”
The CEO advised on employment for the report of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities in the UK requested by then Prime Minister Boris Johnson following the murder of George Floyd.
The widely criticised report concluded that the “claim the country is still institutionally racist is not borne out by the evidence”.
But Marcus says that there is still “a long way to go” for black people in the UK.
He said: “For black people specifically, there’s still a long way to go. People see you but don’t see you.”
The damning research, carried out by insights agency, Perspectus Global, also found that over two thirds of Black respondents said the racial diversity of a company would influence whether they applied to work there.
It also looked at the experiences of Black, Asian and ethnic minorities in the workplace, it emerged that:
57% of Black staff felt they had been passed over for promotion compared to 34% white 59% of Black staff felt the decision was based on the colour of their skin 55% of Black staff said they had applied for a promotion that went to a white colleague.
60% of Black staff felt they had to “code switch” ie adjust their language or change aspects of their appearance at work 75% of Black staff said that they are generally underrepresented in the workforce 46% of Black staff had to anglicise their names to make it easier for colleagues to pronounce Now Marcus says that he would like to see “meaningful and measurable progress” as it drives a competitive advantage for businesses.
He said: “What I would like to see is meaningful and measurable progress with Black, Asian and ethnically diverse employees represented at all levels of businesses.
“It is also significant that it is important to Black employees to see representation. We know diverse organisations make sound business sense as it drives competitive advantage and ultimately performance and revenue.
“In a labour market that is fighting for top talent there is a huge opportunity for diverse organisations to steal a march and appeal to different and broader talent pools.”
