Acting on youth voice: What employers need to do to prevent discrimination at work

This article was written in collaboration with Youth Employment UK.

Central to the work that Youth Futures Foundation and Youth Employment UK do is the importance of youth voice: ensuring that young people are able to own their narrative and highlight their experiences in education, employment and wider society.  

Released earlier this year, our Discrimination and Work report found that half of young people from an ethnic minority background face prejudice and discrimination as they enter the world of work. Seven in ten of those young people who had faced discrimination planned to switch industries.  

In Youth Employment UK’s 2024 Youth Voice Census report, discrimination was identified as the biggest worry that young people have for the country. 17% of respondents in work stated they had personally experienced bullying or harassment at least once, and 24% of respondents said they had seen it happen. 

Employers need to listen to and understand these experiences not only because we are letting down our young people, but with almost a quarter of the UK’s population below the age of 25 coming from an ethnic minority background, employers will be missing out on and losing talent if they do not address the issues raised by the over 8,000 young people who fed into both of these reports. 

The young people we spoke to for our Discrimination and Work report believed the activities that would have the greatest impact on overcoming these experiences would be prioritising work experience for those from ethnic minority backgrounds, and taking a zero-tolerance approach to tackling non-inclusive behaviour in the workplace. 

So how can employers act on the experiences of young people and ensure that the workplace works for all?  

• Publicly report on ethnicity pay gaps as well as overall representation, providing data on pay, working hours, promotion, and representation in senior roles, and develop an action plan to address the gaps. 

• Ensure their early talent pipeline efforts are inclusive and equitable, with attracting ethnically minoritised young people to their business in mind. They should also look to offer quality opportunities to young ethnically minoritised talent coming into the workplace, including guaranteed work experience and apprenticeship opportunities. 

• Address discriminatory behaviour and build an inclusive culture through taking a zero-tolerance approach to racist remarks, jokes and ‘banter’ and non-inclusive behaviours by colleagues, clients, and customers. Establish a transparent ‘speak up’ culture and reporting practices, ensuring policies are understood and managers and employees are supported and trained to be accountable. 

To read examples of employers who are beginning to take action across these areas please visit What can employers do to support ethnically minoritised young people?. 

Who is Youth Employment UK? 

Founded in 2012 by Laura-Jane Rawlings MBE DL, Youth Employment UK is an independent, not-for-profit social enterprise tackling youth unemployment. Utilising membership, Youth Employment UK helps employers across the UK adhere to the Good Youth Employment Standards to attract and retain young talent. 

Alongside employer membership, Youth Employment UK has a range of resources, including Young Professional training courses for those aged 14-17+, lesson plans for educators and advice for parents.