Following a five month inquiry into the disproportionate rates of unemployment of ethnic minority women, the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Race and Community published its report on the issue.

Focusing on Black, Pakistani and Bangladeshi women, the report found that discrimination is present at every stage of the recruitment process, particularly at application and interview stages. The report called for increased monitoring of how unemployment and redundancy impacts ethnic minority women.

Written on behalf of the APPG by Runnymede's Public Affairs Manager Vicki Butler, the report found that discrimination is present at every level of the recruitment process and calls for more action from government in order to decrease high unemployment levels of these groups.

The inquiry gathered evidence in parliament, through written submissions and by talking to women throughout the country. Evidence received is available below. In addition a short film was been made, which includes interviews on the issue with ethnic minority women around the country.

Watch the film here.

Oral evidence summaries:

 
• Evidence session 1, 17 July 2012
 
• Evidence session 2, 12 September 2012
 

Written evidence submissions:

 
• BECTU
 
• BECTU Appendix 1
 
• BECTU Appendix 2
 
• Bradford Metropolitan District Council
 
• The Daycare Trust
 
• The Equality and Human Rights Commission
 
• The Ethnic Minority Advisory Group (EMAG)
 
• Equanomics UK submission 1
 
• Equanomics UK submission 2
 
• Friends, Families and Travellers
 
• Professor Anthony Health (follow up submission on affirmative action in Ireland)
 
• Professors Anthony Heath and Yaojun Li (follow up submission Somali unemployment)
 
• Anya Hart Dyke, former Quilliam employee (Evidence submitted was a report written for Quilliam: Immigrant, Muslim, Female: Triple Paralysis? Anya Hart Dyke and Lucy James, 2009)
 
• Hopscotch
 
• Jan Trust
 
• Professor Yaojun Li (follow up submission on Pakistani and Bangladeshi female unemployment)
 
• Micah Challenge
 
• ESOL Programme, NIACE
 
• Northern Homeworking Project
 
• One North West
 
• Runnymede Trust (submission on bank lending disclosure, as previously sent to the Department for Communities and Local Government)
 
• Tower Hamlets Council
 
• ZHQ Consultancy
 
• Ziwo Zimbabwe Women
 

Terms of reference

 
• Are unemployment rates of Black, Bangladeshi and Pakistani women being more affected by the current recession compared to previous recessions?
 
• What are the reasons behind the high levels of unemployment of these particular groups?
 
• How effective are current policies in addressing unemployment levels of the target groups? Is further intervention needed, and if so, what should this look like?
 
• What impact is redundancy and unemployment having on lone mothers and their children among the target groups?
 
• Have there been changes in labour market inactivity of certain groups, and if so, why?
 

Inquiry sub-committee Members

 
• David Lammy MP (Chair of the APPG and Chair of inquiry sub-committee, Labour)
 
• Debbie Abrahams MP (Labour)
 
• Baroness Benjamin (Liberal Democrat)
 
• Baroness Hussein-Ece (Liberal Democrat)
 
• Baroness Berridge (Conservative)

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The Runnymede Trust acts as the secretariat for the APPG on Race and Community, which in 2012 was chaired by David Lammy MP.