The ethnicity wealth gap

Bangladeshi and Black Africans poorest in country

THE poorest ethnic groups in Britain have less than a quarter of White Brits’ average wealth. New data from the Office for National statistics shows that Bangladeshi and Black African people are the worst-off in Britain. Between April 2016 and March 2018, those ethnic groups had an average household wealth of £141,100 and £147,300 respectively.

Both of these are less than a quarter of the average wealth of a White British household, which sat at £590,400.

This figure is the combined wealth of the entire household and includes savings, property, physical wealth and private pensions.

An expert at a racial equality charity has suggested that tackling employment discrimination is key to solving this ethnicity gap.

Households with a White British head were around nine times as likely to be in the top fifth for total wealth (above £865,400 wealth) as Black Africans, and 18 times as likely as Bangladeshis.

Around 44 per cent of both Black African and other Asian households had debts exceeding their assets.

This is double the rate for White British households, which was 22 per cent.

Half of both Black African and Bangladeshi households had a total wealth of £42,200 or less, compared to just under a fifth of White British households.

The ONS says that White British people are more likely to be employed in higher-paid, professional jobs, while Black Africans are more likely to be in “elementary” positions, such as cleaners or refuse workers.

This may be what pulls up the average earnings of White Brits.

It also said households headed by one of the Black ethnic groups were more likely to live in London than any other region, where high prices and relatively low earnings can hurt savings.

Regional breakdowns for average household wealth show this to be the case.

During the 2016/18 period, the median household wealth for White British people in London was £524,100, compared to just £87,200 for all other ethnicities.

White Brits were poorest in the North East, being worth £172,900, while all other ethnicities were richest in the South East, being worth £267,400.

Aliya Mohammed, CEO of charity Race Equality First, said: “Nearly half of the UK’s BME households live in poverty and this has been compounded further by job losses and pay cuts during the pandemic.

“There are a number of reasons for the disparity, including attainment gaps in education and skills, especially for people from specific ethnic minority groups.

“However, at Race Equality First we see a lot of discrimination in employment which affects the recruitment and career progression of BME people.

“This is one place to start if we want to see improvements.

“Employers need to recognise bias and consider anonymising applications.”