Ethnic discrimination has been singled out by students and recent graduates as the most frequent reason for being isolated by employers and colleagues.
Among both males and females, nearly three in five claim to have been discriminated against. Just one in 10 of those affected by discrimination claim to have received appropriate help from their employers.
It paints a depressing picture of Britain’s workplace as viewed by students and graduates who have yet to gain a foothold in their careers.
The survey of more than 100 users of graduate recruitment service Milkround.com also found the banking and finance industry to be viewed as the most prone to discrimination.
Milkround.com spokesperson Mike Barnard said: “Depressingly, students and graduates are starting their careers with a view discrimination is rife in the workplace. The last thing students and graduates need in such a competitive jobs market is to feel they may miss out on a job because of the colour of their skin or face problems when they start that role they’ve fought so hard to get.
“Employers should take note that a clear equal opportunities policy would encourage more applicants, and certainly ease any fears graduates might have of starting out in the banking and finance industry where it is thought discrimination is common.”
A student view of workplace discrimination by gender
The banking and finance has the worst reputation for discrimination with 50 percent of males claiming employees suffer from discrimination in the industry. Accounting, auditing and finance was tied with construction, property and surveying by being viewed as the industry next most prone to workplace discrimination by 24 percent of respondents. Female respondents were more lenient towards the banking and financial services while still rating the industry as the most prone to discrimination. Some 34 percent earmarked it as a problem area, followed by retail, buying & merchandising on 28 percent and advertising, marketing & PR on 26 percent. Logistics, transport, purchasing & supply together with manufacturing were given a vote of confidence with just two percent stating these are prone to workplace discrimination.
Among both males and females, nearly three in five claim to have been discriminated against. Discrimination based on their ethnicity was the most common form: 45 percent of males and 37 percent of females have been isolated based on their culture. The next most common discrimination was age (26 percent females; 15 percent males) and gender (20 percent females; 12 percent males).
It is claimed employers offered very little assistance to those affected by discrimination – just 14 percent claim of males and a only six percent of females said they received appropriate help from their employers.
Individuals taking a greater interest in how their colleagues are treated was said to be the best way to erase discrimination according to 44 percent of women and 40 percent of men. Company policy was the next most popular.
Nearly three quarters of females said they are more likely to apply to a firm with a clear equal opportunities policy, compared to just 44 percent of males. Almost half the males questioned (45 percent) said it makes no difference – just less than a quarter of females felt the same way.
Positive discrimination was given the thumbs down by both sexes, though women were more lenient. Four out of five men said there was not a case of positive discrimination while nearly two thirds of women felt the same way.
Half of all males who answered the survey said discrimination was most likely to come from the top down and 32 percent said it would be peers most likely to lead any unfair treatment of others, with two in five stating lower management such as team leaders and supervisors as the source. Nearly a quarter (23 percent) said senior management and the same viewed non-management as the chief perpetrators.
Seven out of ten females agree that discrimination originates from the top levels of management down, with middle management the worse offenders (42 percent) followed by low level management (36 percent).
