REC and Jobcentre plus launch diversity initiative

The Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) and Jobcentre Plus have teamed up to introduce a Diversity Pledge and Toolkit aimed at helping both private and public sector recruiters tackle discrimination.

These products have been designed to enable all agencies better access to the right support to raise UK recruitment standards, based on the business need to recruit a diverse workforce.

Lesley Strathie, Acting Jobcentre Plus Chief Executive, said: "Today, diversity is a 'bottom line' issue for all businesses. We are therefore, delighted to be working in partnership with the REC to develop and deliver the Recruitment Industry Diversity Pledge and Toolkit. These products will be vital in helping UK companies recruit a diverse workforce, and they will also signal to employers how positively the recruitment industry is responding to the challenge of placing diversity at the heart of the recruitment process".

Employers can initially sign the pledge to show their commitment to developing best practice in diversity. There is then the opportunity to complete an online toolkit, which self-assesses whether recruiters are compliant in their diversity policies. Finally an action plan is generated to assist employers in improving their diversity procedures. The initiative is expected to be officially launched in October 2005.

Marcia Roberts, Deputy Chief Executive, REC says, "The Recruitment industry should be leading the way in diversity and I believe this tool will become an invaluable resource to companies trying to understand the wealth of policy, legislative requirements and good practice guidelines. This tool will allow companies large and small to not only demonstrate compliance but to have aspirational targets that are achievable."

More needs to be done to support disabled rights in the workplace, says DRC

More than half a million enquiries have been made to the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) Helpline since it was established in 2000. This year the Helpline has handled 124,368 enquiries with 70% coming from disabled individuals, their representatives, relatives or friends.

10,986 enquiries of potential disability discrimination were received in the past year. Almost half of these (49%) were employment related, highlighting the discrimination that disabled people continue to face in the workplace. A further 35% of potential discrimination enquiries related to services, 12% to education and 4% to premises.

According to the Impact Report, which sets out the work of the DRC during 2004-5, in comparison to the last five years, there was a noticeable surge in enquiries as new disability legislation came into force in October 2004. Employment rights for disabled people dramatically improved from 1 October 2004 when the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) was extended to cover all employers except the armed forces.

The Disability Rights Commission (DRC) has also launched a major national debate on the future of disabled people’s equality in Britain.

Bert Massie, Chairman of the Disability Rights Commission said: “The DRC will leave a strong legacy but Britain still has a long way to go before disabled people can take up their place as full and active citizens. In employment disabled people remain twice as likely to be out of work and more likely to earn less; in education they have fewer qualifications; transport remains a barrier for many; and the right to independent living is still a dream rather than a reality.”

Source: The Disability Rights Commission
Related link: The Impact Report

Opportunities ripe for black businesses in the public sector

According to an interview with Sunny Lambe, publisher of Ethno News, a bi-monthly magazine which promotes BME businesses, the public sector will be one of the main areas where opportunities will be created through the government. However, to take advantage of these opportunities black entrepreneurs need to think outside the box and look beyond retail enterprises.

Read more of the interview on Black Enterprise.

Ethnic minority groups to be re-labelled

The UK government plans to follow the U.S style of naming ethnic minorities in an effort to strengthen their ties to the UK.

According to a report in today's Scotsman newspaper, Home Office minister, Hazel Blears, will consult leaders of minority groups and gage their opinions on using US-style hyphenated terms such as Asian-British, Pakistani-British or Indian-British, rather than simply 'Asians'.

The idea is one of a set of proposals to be floated at meetings that Ms Blears is holding around the country to discuss how to steer young Muslims away from radicalism.

Source: The Scotsman
News link: Plan to rename minorities in bid to strengthen ties to UK

Tech industry still failing to attract female workers

The UK technology industry is facing a recruitment crisis because the sector cannot attract females into the industry, according to Scottish newspaper, the Sunday Herald.

Apparently, one in five IT workers are female and that figure is steadily in decline.T he sector experienced a 10% drop in the number of woman workers last year and according to Maggie Berry, editor of specialist website, womenintechnology.co.uk, the sector's inability to attract the fairer sex is effectively cutting itself off from half the talent pool.

Source: The Sunday Herald
News link: Technology industry facing a recruitment crisis unless sector can open up to IT girls

Glasgow launches scheme to help minorities access public service tenders

Glasgow Council has launched a new scheme to help ethnic minority businesses access tenders for public service contracts. Devised by Glasgow's Ethnic Minority Integrated Business Support, the Supplier Development Programme gives small firms the opportunity to diversify into new markets. The scheme aims to provide a platform for firms to engage in procurement activities where buyers will be encouraged to look at a multicultural market and business owners are introduced to new growth opportunities.

Source: Paisa online
News link: Tender access scheme targets minorities

Female leaders foster culture of equal opportunity

Women leaders and managers are pivotal to delivering gender equality and diversity in local government, according to research by the Bristol Business School. The school compiled case studies of five councils led by women managers or politicians, to show how councils can give women an equal chance of reaching the top and staying there.

Organisational and political leadership had the greatest impact on good practice in gender equality. Although having women at the top was not essential, councils with women chief executives, senior managers and leaders created an impetus for women managers and front-line staff to succeed.

Source: Local Government Chronicle

Law firms to be ranked by diversity

The Black Solicitors Network and the Commission for Racial Equality have teamed up to launch the first league table ranking law firms by diversity.

The project, which has been endorsed by the Department for Constitutional Affairs and the Law Society, will for the first time reveal the demographic composition of the top 100 City law firms iin the UK. The results of the survey will be revealed by The Lawyer in early January 2006.

Source: The Lawyer.com
News link: Firms' diversity to be ranked in CRE-BSN top 100