(PR in) HR Pulse | HR News Round-up: 26th June – 2nd July 2023

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Black, Bangali and Pakistani women are the least likely to receive fair pay and career development opportunities

McKinsey's recent report on intersectional experiences found that Black, Bangali and Pakistani (BBP) women are at the bottom of the list when it comes to pay and labour force participation compared to all other ethnicity and gender combinations.

The pay discrepancies are quite high, with BBP women earning less than a third of White British men’s salary - Black (21%), Bangali (27%) and Pakistani (23%) women.

The Race in the UK workplace: The intersectional experience report, which polled c2,800 UK employees of various ethnicities, also revealed that the overall numbers of BBP women participating in the workforce are significantly lower than White British women (73%) and White British men (78%) - standing at 43% for Bangali and Pakistani women and 64% for Black women.

McKinsey's research also shows that although there has been a 14% increase in BBP who hold higher paying occupations over the past two decades, BBP women are still incredibly underrepresented in FTSE 100 leadership roles, only accounting for 0.3% of chief executive (CEO), chief finance (CFO) and chief operating officer (COO) positions.

Sundiatu Dixon-Fyle, Senior Fellow at McKinsey, states that this is partly because most of the older BBP women who are employed hold lower-skilled jobs due to a lack of qualifications or having received an education outside of Britain. 

Dixon-Fyle explains that employers must address these skills gaps and support BBP employees through reskilling and upskilling programmes to obtain higher-paying roles. 

Once in these roles, employers must ensure a transparent path for career progression, as McKinsey's report also shows that BBP middle managers who experienced a lack of career development opportunities and faced discrimination in the workplace were more likely to leave their companies.

Sources: People Management, HR Magazine and Personnel Today. 

How can employers manage unpaid overtime to reduce employee burnout?

Research from Claro Wellbeing reveals over a third (34%) of UK employees are working unpaid overtime, leading to burnout and physical and emotional exhaustion from stress. 

Of the 1,000 UK employees surveyed, nearly a quarter (22%) state they work between one to five hours of overtime. Almost a quarter (22%) also said they felt burnout in the previous six months.

The Wellbeing Washing - The True Cost report found that HR and recruitment professionals and the agriculture industries are most heavily affected by these issues, as half (50%) of respondents in these fields claim to work one to five hours of unpaid overtime.

Bina Briggs, Director of Plain Talking HR, explains that HR professionals have a particularly hard time managing their workload because it’s a time-sensitive role with high expectations to get things done.

Louise Aston, Wellbeing Director at Business in the Community (BITC), urges employers to support employees through flexible working as soon as they are hired and to allow them to switch off after their contractual hours have been fulfilled. 

Gemma Bullivant, Executive Coach and HR Consultant, says that the nine-to-five work day is no longer feasible for many, and businesses need to move towards more flexible work schedules based on employee trust, which is the key to preventing burnout.

Sources: People Management and HR News.