Working classes miss out on top jobs ‘ because they wear brown shoes’
YOUNGsTErs from working class backgrounds are locked out of jobs at investment banks because they wear the ‘wrong’ clothes or do not speak with a posh accent, research reveals.
Bosses still favour graduates from middle and high income backgrounds over applicants from poorer backgrounds, the social Mobility Commission reports.
Bright working class children are rejected for jobs as they do not know about ‘opaque’ dress codes that richer children grow up with, experts found.
Wearing brown shoes with a suit was seen as a faux pas, for example.
researchers from royal Holloway University of London and the University of Birmingham found that managers often chose candidates who displayed ‘polish’ and who would be the ‘best fit’ to present to clients.
They found ‘the wearing of brown shoes with a business suit is generally (though not always) considered unacceptable’ in the City by and for British bankers within the investment banking (corporate finance) division’.
One industry source told the commission that ‘from my experience, [non-privileged students]…don’t have a haircut … their suit’s always too big … they don’t know which tie to wear’.
The report found that ‘hiring managers consider that these characteristics, summarised as “polish”, reassure clients’. social skills such as knowing how to balance confidence and deference were often picked up at an early age by those from wealthier backgrounds. Youngsters who wanted to join the industry were also often expected to have work experience – difficult for those without friends or family in the business.
Programmes to boost social mobility in elite banks were ‘small scale’ though some were making good progress, the sMC found.
Alan Milburn, the former Labour cabinet minister and chairman of the commission, said: ‘Bright working class kids are being systematically locked out of top jobs in investment banking because they may not attend a small handful of elite universities or understand arcane culture rules.’
researchers concluded that evidence ‘suggests that aspirant bankers can be ruled as unfit for the profession on the basis of speech, accent, dress or mannerism, even where their technical aptitude is exceptional.’
Dr Louise Ashley, from royal Holloway University of London, who led the research, said: ‘Our research suggests students from less privileged backgrounds are less likely to get the top jobs – no matter how talented.’