Closed petition Make Anti-Racism training mandatory in all UK workplaces
I want the government to make Anti-Racism training mandatory in all UK workplaces. To make companies implement this training into their inductions and to make employees take part in the training on a regular basis, to ensure that the training stays relevant.
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I want the Government or Parliament to do this because I think it is important that employers and their employees are educated on what is racism, how it can be reported and handled, what racism looks like and to provide awareness of racism in the workplace. Work forces can be very diverse and it is important that all races are respected and protected while they work. I have personally seen racism within a workplace and the effects it has on the minorities within the environment.
This petition is closed All petitions run for 6 months
Government responded
This response was given on 7 August 2020
We are committed to tackling racism in the UK, and have recently established a new cross-government commission which will consider all options in the round and make recommendations for reform.
Read the response in full
This Government has always said –as set out in our manifesto – that we will ensure Britain is a fairer society and we will tackle racial and ethnic inequalities wherever they exist.
Racism has no place in our communities, our workplaces or our lives. We have already established a Government Equality Hub, which includes the Race Disparity Unit to look specifically at race and ethnicity. We also launched the Race at Work Charter, giving businesses a clear set of actions to help create greater opportunities for ethnic minorities at work.
We know that there is still much progress to be made in this area, which is why we recently announced the establishment of a new cross-government commission to examine continuing racial and ethnic inequalities in Britain, and to set out concrete recommendations for further reform.
The commission will consider all aspects of inequality, including in employment and will champion the success of BAME groups. The aim is to set out a new, positive agenda for change – balancing the needs of individuals, communities and society. It will build on the work of the Race Disparity Unit, but will go further to understand why disparities exist, what works and what doesn’t, and present recommendations for action across Government and other public bodies.
Therefore, whilst at this stage we are not committing to introducing mandatory anti- racism training, we are taking important steps to assess what reforms will have the most significant and positive impacts on tackling racism and inequalities in the UK workplaces.
The Government recently announced membership and terms of reference for the Commission, details of which can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities
The Commission will aim to report its findings on the priority areas of health, education, criminal justice and employment by the end of this year.
Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy
Related activity
Share your views on ethnic disparities and inequality in the UK
The Government has launched a consultation on ethnic disparities and inequality in the UK, and want to hear from members of the public. There are ten questions, and you can answer any or all of them.
You can find out more about the consultation and contribute here:
The closing date for responses is Monday 30 November 2020.
What is the Petitions Committee?
The Petitions Committee is a cross-party group of MPs that considers e-petitions submitted on Parliament’s petitions website and public (paper) petitions presented to the House of Commons. It is independent of the Government.
Find out more about the Committee: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/
Get real-time updates on the Committee's work by following them on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/HoCPetitions
Find out more about how petitions work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VGEOraE08Jk&feature=youtu.be
These are ‘select committees’. Find out how Select Committees work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_2RDuDs44c
Ministerial statement on the report of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities
On Tuesday 20 April, the Minister for Equalities Kemi Badenoch MP gave a statement to the House of Commons on the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities.
The statement follows the Government's publication of the report of the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-report-of-the-commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities
Watch the statement here: https://parliamentlive.tv/event/index/b586787a-eb7f-409b-b20e-9cb31d21ddd0?in=13:38:40
Read the transcript here: https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2021-04-20/debates/1502466F-D06B-402A-B7C0-03452FFB1DA9/CommissionOnRaceAndEthnicDisparities
Ministerial statements are a way for Ministers to bring an important matter to the attention of the House. Find out more about them here: https://www.parliament.uk/about/how/business/statements/
What did the report say about bias at work?
The Commission considered bias and discrimination at work recommended that organisations to now move away from funding unconscious bias training and replace this with new interventions that when implemented, can be measured or evaluated for their efficacy, such as:
mandated sponsorship groups to ensure wider exposure of ethnic minority individuals to their peers, managers and other decision makers
training and routine skills support for all employees in their professional and personal lives (for example on collaboration, confidence, communication, and presentation skills), which could disproportionately benefit more disadvantaged groups
The Commission also recommended that the government work with a panel of academics and practitioners to develop resources and evidence-based approaches of what does work to advance fairness in the workplace.
Read the report's section on bias at work here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-report-of-the-commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities/employment-fairness-at-work-and-enterprise#bias-at-work-and-what-to-do-about-it
What is the Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities?
The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities (CRED) has been set up by the Government to review inequality in the UK, focusing on areas including poverty, education, employment, health and the criminal justice system. The Commission, which is independent of the Government, will look at outcomes for the whole population.
Find out more about the Commission here: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/commission-on-race-and-ethnic-disparities