Working Lives Research Institute
Dr Anna Pollert, Tessa Wright
May 2004- July 2006
The project will explore the experiences of work and routes to support and
advice for ethnic minority workers in a sector in which there is a high concentration
of ethnic minority employment: the hotel and catering industry. Through in-depth
interviews with employees, employers and possibly family members, the research
aims to provide detailed information on experiences at work, as well as sources
of support and advice used.
The research will identify labour market histories and examine support and advice resources used, including institutional support, such as Acas, the Commission for Racial Equality, trade unions, Citizens' Advice Bureaux and community associations, as well as family networks, friends and informal community support. In a sector with high turnover and labour shortages, the research will focus on measures that can improve retention and advancement, contributing to Acas’s mission to promote good practice in employment and government policies that aim to address the labour market disadvantage experienced by many ethnic minority groups.
The research will be carried out primarily by means of around 50 in-depth interviews among several ethnic groups, including first and second-generation British minorities, as well as recent migrants, providing a mixture of experiences in this ethnically heterogeneous sector. It is also proposed that employers and, where appropriate, their families will also be recruited as research participants. However all interviews will be carried out in confidence and individuals will not be identifiable. Secondary statistical data and official data will also be examined to provide a contextual framework for the study.
The fieldwork will be conducted in three English regions, London, the West Midlands and the South West. This is to ensure that the research includes the experiences of workers in large urban areas with significant ethnic minority populations who may benefit from community support, as well as those in areas with smaller ethnic minority or migrant populations who may be more isolated.
The project will be assisted by an Advisory Group, made up of individuals
and representatives of organisations with expertise in this area, and will
provide an external, impartial body for monitoring and evaluation.
The project started work in 2004 and interviews will take place during 2005 and early 2006, with the results being completed by July 2006.
Wright, T. and Pollert, A. (2006) The Experience of Ethnic Minority Workers in the Hotel and Catering Industry: Routes to support and advice on workplace problems, Acas Research Paper 03/06, London:Acas.
Hotel & Catering: Final Report