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The Social Mobility Foundation’s Employer Index opens
for submissions on Monday 1stMarch until Friday
28th May.
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Index opening at social mobility crunch point, with
almost three fifths of those unemployed in the UK younger than
25.[1]
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2021 Index will be first benchmark of the impact of the
pandemic on social mobility.
Today, the Social Mobility Foundation’s 2021 Employer Index opens
for submissions. The charity is urging UK employers to
demonstrate their commitment to social mobility by entering the
Index during a period of rising youth unemployment triggered by
the pandemic.
The Index is the creation of the Social Mobility Foundation and
ranks the UK’s employers on the actions they are taking to ensure
they are open to accessing and progressing talent from all
backgrounds. It’s free of charge, employers can enter anonymously
and organisations receive a comprehensive audit to inform social
mobility strategy.
Last year’s Top 75 employers for social mobility, as ranked in
the Index, were dominated by Law (36%), public sector (25%) and
financial services (13%). The Social Mobility Foundation is now
urging those sectors which have profited from the pandemic, such
as big tech, gaming, or pharmaceutical companies, to make a
public commitment to social mobility in 2021.
Sarah Atkinson, Chief Executive of the Social Mobility
Foundation, said:
“After an incredibly challenging year, it is
vital we do not let the pandemic undo the last decade of progress
made on socioeconomic diversity in the workplace. We know that
young people from low-income backgrounds could be the biggest
economic victims of the pandemic – but we also know businesses
have responded to the challenge and invested in social mobility.
This year’s Index will be the first benchmark of how the pandemic
has affected employer practice, which is why it is critical that
employers across every sector join the Employer Index and commit
to prioritising social mobility.”
The Rt. Hon , Chair of the Social Mobility Foundation,
said:
“The scars of Covid-19 will be felt in the lives of young people
for years to come, particularly in the job market as youth
unemployment continues to soar. Recovery and future levelling up
will only be possible if Government and business both play their
part. The stakes are high for the Chancellor to outline the
necessary support in next week’s Budget, and I urge all employers
to also step up to the plate in 2021.”
About the Social Mobility Employer Index
The Social Mobility Employer Index is comprised of two elements,
questions directed at employers, and an employee survey, which
was introduced in 2018. The former assesses employers work across
seven areas: their work with young people, routes into the
employer, the attraction of staff, recruitment and selection,
data collection, progression of staff and experienced hires and
advocacy. The latter is to add qualitative insights and
contextualise the data provided in submissions. Employers are
then benchmarked against one another based on the results.
The 2020 report is available
here
and includes details of the Index methodology.
[1] ONS Labour Market Overview, Feb 2021
