By Lucinda Platt, University of Essex
Research commissioned by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has drawn attention to the stark differences in poverty risks that face people from different ethnic groups. Poverty rates are higher for those from all minority groups compared with the white majority, with particularly high rates for Pakistanis and Bangladeshis - a shocking two-thirds of children from these groups face poverty.
In my overview of existing research into poverty, I draw attention to research indicating disadvantage in employment, and how it intersects with other aspects of groups' experience.
Minority groups face higher risks of unemployment. Substantial proportions are also out of the labour market for other reasons, such as ill-health and family responsibilities. Fifty per cent of working-age Pakistani and Bangladeshi families with children contain someone with a long-term illness, resulting in high rates of workless households. Low pay for men and low employment rates among women also mean poverty in working households.
On the other hand, Black Caribbean and Black African families have higher rates of lone parenthood than white families, though Black Caribbean lone parents are more likely to be in employment than the majority of lone parents.
It is clear that appropriate childcare for minority group families remains an important issue for increasing employment rates and family incomes. Lack of provision adds to the substantial restrictions on employment already faced by ethnic minority mothers. However, adequate income maintenance policies, particularly for families with multiple or complex needs, should not be driven off the agenda by the focus on employment.
We also need to acknowledge that women are unlikely to enter work if they consider the interests of their children are best served by their protective presence in difficult circumstances.
