Crisis in hospitality sector due to Covid-19 hits BAME workers hard, reveals study

A NEW study has revealed that black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people were hit hard by the crisis in the hospitality compared to white people as a majority of them are employed in the sector.

The study by Resolution Foundation thinktank has said that one in 12 (8 per cent) workers from BAME backgrounds are employed in hospitality roles compared with one in 20 (5 per cent) white British workers.

Overall, 300,000 people from BAME backgrounds work in the sector.

Hospitality is one of the sectors hardest hit by the economic fallout of the pandemic as restaurants, bars and other venues have been shut for months during the lockdowns, reported The Guardian.

According to the study, hospitality was one of the lowest paying sectors in the economy, with a typical hourly pay of £8.72. About 23 per cent of hospitality workers were paid at or below the national living wage.

The research also said that BAME workers faced 'pay penalties' – pay gaps that account for workers’ age, qualifications, experience, and the kinds of jobs they do – relative to white British workers.

The report further said that BAME men were paid 65p an hour less than white British men on average, and BAME women were also underpaid.

The typical age of a Bangladeshi worker in hospitality was 42 – higher than the typical age for Bangladeshi workers across the whole economy (35), and higher than white British workers in hospitality (28).

Indian workers in hospitality were among the highest paid ethnic group per hour (£8.96) and among the most likely to be in high-paying occupations (28 per cent) such as hotel and restaurant managers. This corresponds with 41 per cent of Indian hospitality workers holding a degree, The Guardian report added.

One in four Bangladeshi hospitality workers had no qualifications and typically earned 12 per cent less than Indian hospitality workers, at £7.85 an hour.

“As workers from BAME backgrounds are disproportionately likely to work in hospitality, a significant number of workers risk moving into unemployment when the furlough scheme ends in the spring. The government should bear that in mind for the jobs support programmes it is providing," Nye Cominetti, the senior economist at the Resolution Foundation, told The Guardian.

A report by the British Beer & Pubs Association and the consultancy Oxford Economics has earlier  warned that 291,000 jobs in the hospitality trade could be lost as a result of coronavirus restrictions.