Ethnic minorities 'can find it nearly twice as hard to get jobs'

Analyisis of new figures indicates a racial 'employment gap' of around 150,000 jobs in the UK

New figures have suggested that ethnic minority workers can find it nearly twice as hard as their white counterparts to get jobs in some parts of Britain (Rex)

Ethnic minority workers can find it nearly twice as hard as their white counterparts to get jobs in some parts of Britain, new figures suggest today.

An analysis of statistics by the Resolution Foundation think-tank found that across the country there is now a racial “employment gap” of around 150,000 jobs. The figure represents how many more jobs should be filled by black and Asian workers if they had the same employment prospects as their white counterparts.

The figures reveal alarming disparities in the prospects of ethnic minority workers in different regions.

The overall employment rate for all 16- to 64-year-olds in the UK is 73 per cent, but it drops to 62 per cent for working-age black and minority ethnic people.

The best area was Scotland, outside Glasgow, at 74 per cent, compared with the lowest of 48 per cent in the North-east, outside Tyne & Wear. London has a 58 per cent black and minority ethnic employment rate compared with 70 per cent for whites.

Rebecca Hilsenrath, chief executive of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, called for “a long-term strategy to achieve equality”.