Ethnic minorities in the UK today face an uphill struggle. Low wages, insecure work, and discrimination in the workplace have pulled up the ladder for many talented people trying to start a career, or get a deserved promotion.
Black and minority ethnic people are much more likely to be in deep poverty than white people and it is they who are disproportionately feeling the squeeze.
Back in 2018, I thought our government had finally woken up to this crisis. After years of campaigning from myself and others from Labour, they said that mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting should be introduced for Britain’s largest companies.
Sadly, five years later, the government has rowed back on its statement and instead introduced only voluntary guidelines. This is a too little, too late approach that will perpetuate workplace inequalities for millions of people.
That’s why I am supporting and working with the Runnymede Trust and ShareAction to call for the government to introduce mandatory ethnicity pay gap reporting, or EPG.
You can read about this in my article at https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/dawn-butler-mp-its-time-for-mandatory-ethnicity-pay-gap-reporting_uk_64fabd20e4b001fc1fdf891c.