Posted on February 10, 2016

NEW RESEARCH FROM THE TUC REVEALS PAY GAP WIDENS AS QUALIFICATIONS INCREASE

Black workers with degrees earn an average of 23.1% less than white workers with degrees, new figures from the TUC reveal.

The research found that a degree-educated black worker earns an average of £11.73 an hour, compared to £18.63 an hour for white workers with degrees.

Overall, the pay gap between white and black workers stands at 12.8% – or £1.72 – with the gap at its widest for those with a degree qualification (see chart). For all black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) workers, the gap to white colleagues is 5.6%.

TUC General Secretary Frances O’Grady said: “These are very worrying findings. Black and Asian people face a massive pay gap, even if they have a degree. This is not about education, but about the systemic disadvantages ethnic minority workers face in the UK.

“The harsh reality is that at any level of education, black and Asian workers are getting paid less than their white counterparts. Even today race still plays a huge role in determining pay.”

The TUC is calling on the government to develop a race equality strategy as a matter of political priority, with clear targets and adequate resourcing including measures to tackle the growth of casualised work, which disproportionately affects BAME workers; requirements on employers to analyse and publish pay data by ethnicity; and a requirement for public authorities to use procurement to spread good practice.

“The government cannot afford to ignore these figures and must now take genuine action to tackle pay discrimination,” O’Grady said.

The TUC also wants government to encourage employers to focus on fostering opportunities for BAME leadership and building transparent career progression pathways, as well as tackling discrimination in recruitment through measures such as anonymised CVs.

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