UK Music Urges Music Biz to Improve Conditions For Disabled People Facing Discrimination at WorkOFFICIAL PRESS RELEASENEWS PROVIDED BY UK Music 21.04.2021: UK Music is calling on music industry leaders to ensure disabled people and people with long term health conditions can realise their dreams by removing potential barriers to job opportunities. The call comes as UK Music published new findings from its Workforce Diversity Survey that reveal one in five disabled people in the music industry has faced discrimination at work. Building on UK Music’s Diversity Report published last October, this newly released data comes from UK Music’s 2020 Diversity Survey of more than 3,558 people. It is published for the first time today. The key findings of the UK Music Workforce Diversity Survey 2020 related to disabled people working in the music industry are:
UK Music would like an industry toolkit to be developed that would help organisations do more to improve opportunities for disabled people. UK Music Chief Executive Jamie Njoku-Goodwin said: “However, our latest data reveals we still have work to do on ensuring the industry is a safe and supportive place for people with a disability or long-term health condition. “There is no place for discrimination of any kind in our industry, and it is shocking to hear some of the experiences that disabled people have faced in the workplace. “Across the music industry, we must continue to do everything we can to remove the barriers that disabled people face and ensure there is true equality of opportunity, so that everyone can fulfil their potential.” UK Music Head of Diversity Rachel Bolland said: “We want to ensure our talent pipeline reflects the diversity of the country. “A key part of this is making sure the industry is developing opportunities for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions to gain the necessary skills, experience, support and contacts they require to work or volunteer in the music industry.” Attitude is Everything Founder Suzanne Bull MBE: “We know from our own Beyond the Music project that many disabled people are put off from applying for jobs in the music industry for fear of discrimination, and those that do work in the industry often feel a need to hide their impairment due to fears that, if their impairment is known, they will face discrimination or even lose their jobs. “We welcome the publication of the results of UK Music’s Workforce Diversity Survey and are committed to supporting UK Music to make the industry accessible for everyone who wants to work in it.” Blue Raincoat Chrysalis Group Chairman Robin Miller CBE says: “In fact, according to Accenture’s analysis of 140 companies, those that prioritise disability employment double their net income and benefit from 30% higher economic margins. “My company, Blue Raincoat Chrysalis Group, employs over 42% people with protected characteristics under the category of disability. We outperformed the market by over 25% last year compared to our competitors. “The music industry would benefit massively from leading the way when it comes to employing people with disabilities, who make a fantastic contribution to the workplace in both economic and social terms.” UK Music Diversity Taskforce Chair Ammo Talwar MBE said: “We need to tear down the barriers to make our workplaces accessible to everyone and work together to bring about those changes."
Source UK Music
April 21, 2021 4:00am ET by Pressparty |