brap Deputy CEO Asif Afridi responds in the Birmingham Post to reports that Black young people face discrimination in education and employment.  

Ethnic minorities and poor 'left behind' by Birmingham businesses

Sep 4 2008 by Shahid Naqvi, Education Correspondent

Birmingham businesses are failing to tackle the “pervasive inequality” which is preventing disadvantaged and ethnic minority workers from entering the professional sector, a lobby group has claimed.

Children from poorer backgrounds or ethnic minorities are denied access to the best education and employment opportunities amid a climate of discrimination that favours those from more privileged backgrounds, according to BRAP, formerly the Birmingham Race Action Partnership.

The warning highlights concerns over the future workforce in the city, which is expected to become Britain’s first “majority ethnic minority” conurbation within the next 15 years as the inner city population grows.

BRAP spoke out as two Birmingham academics presented research showing pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds in the city are less likely to get work placements in professional sector jobs.

The study by Birmingham City University found pupils from selective schools find it much easier to get placed at law firms and banks working alongside people in managerial roles.

A separate study from Warwick University found Black Caribbean pupils are less likely to be entered for higher-tier science and maths exams because of low teacher expectations and “institutional racism”.

Asif Afridi, deputy chief executive officer of BRAP said: “The big problem in Birmingham is the education system continues to fail particular minority ethnic groups and poor white boys.

“So by the time those young people reach the job market their options are already limited. A lot of them are fighting a double disadvantage because of discrimination in the labour market. It is not just racism. It is not just about the colour of people’s skin.

“Children at selective schools are getting a better crack at the whip. Poor white boys are being failed by the education system as well.”

Mr Afridi said businesses were failing to do their bit to ensure they gave more than lip service to equality.

“The problem is we haven’t really invested that much in the city in improving the fairness of our recruitment practices. We have got better at throwing around statistics about the representation of our workforce but we haven’t moved beyond took kits and employment targets.

“We need employers to take a good hard look at the recruitment practices within their organisations. Initiatives like work experience for kids from disadvantaged backgrounds can be useful, but you have to set that against a context in this city which is a context of systematic pervasive inequality.

“The labour market is very unequal due in no small part to recruitment practices of employers.”

Four out of 10 of Birmingham’s working population is currently black or Asian. The proportion of children aged under 16 who are of black and ethnic minorities is about 50 per cent but expected to rise to about 64 per cent by 2026. The overall birth rate in Birmingham dropped by 14 per cent between 1991 and 2002, but in some areas the fall has been as high as 40 per cent.

Generally speaking, areas of the city reporting higher birth rate rises are located in inner city wards, dominated by ethnic minority groups.

According to the West Midlands Regional Observatory research body, young people from the inner city are more likely to become NEETs - not engaged in Education, Employment or Training.

Head of skills research Andy Phillips said: “There is an issue of the of the progress and development of these kids within education and whether they have the qualifications when they leave.

“It is important to make sure the sort of training and education that is made available to these people is strongly linked to tangible employment opportunities.”

Mr Phillips added that the observatory’s research showed there were also issues around the careers advice given to certain groups of youngsters.

copyright material reproduced courstey of the Bimingham Post

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