Black women now outstrip whites on pay

Black women now outstrip whites on pay

David Leppard and Holly Watt (Source: Sunday Times)

The average earnings of black women in Britain are now higher than their white counterparts,
according to government statistics.

In a landmark social development that suggests the erosion of a
long-standing racial barrier, the figures show “black Caribbean” women earned on average £462 a week – 6% more
than white women – in the three months to October this year.

That is a reversal of the previous year’s figures, when white women
earned more than 7% above their black counterparts. The figures show that black
women’s earnings overtook those of white women in the first three months of
2008 and the pay gap has increased gradually since then.

The data were gathered for The Sunday Times by the Office for National
Statistics. They are based on the labour force survey, the most authoritative
and up-to-date study of pay and conditions.

Yana Johnson, a cosmetics entrepreneur [Yana Cosmetics] whose parents moved to Birmingham from Jamaica in the first wave of immigration after the
second world war, said she was pleased by the findings. “[My parents were] part
of the Windrush generation,” she said. “When that generation came over they had
to work really, really hard and they sometimes felt they missed out on
opportunities, so they were determined their daughters wouldn’t miss out.”

Colleen Harris, the first black press officer at Downing Street and founder of Dignity Management Consultancy,
which advises on equality, said she was “ cynical about the figures”. But she
added: “Black women do work very hard, and often they are the single earner in
a household and have the whole weight of a family on their shoulders.”

The Equality and Human Rights Commission said the figures may be
explained by the fact that half of all black women live in London, where average pay is higher than elsewhere in
the country.

It also said black women tended to take less time off work when having
children, meaning they suffered less of a pay penalty when returning to work. Many
work in health or social services where pay has been rising.

Black women have made other strides in recent years. There have been two
black women in the cabinet in the past decade, including Baroness Scotland, the
attorney general.

Last year 49.1% of black Caribbean
pupils achieved five GCSEs from A* to C, compared with 44.4% the previous year.
Girls do particularly well, with 56.2% gaining five good GCSEs. The
underperformance of black boys, however, is still a concern, with just 41.5%
achieving the best grades.