A new study revealed that private firms and the public sector in the United Kingdom are highly biased in terms of the kind of people they employ. They have been found to discriminate job seekers on the basis of their sexual preferences, the press release states. It also reveals that this sort of employment discrimination against gays and lesbians is very common in the country.

The research conducted by Dr Nick Drydakis of Anglia Ruskin University is the first of its kind in the United Kingdom. For the study, they used 144 young people who are all first time job seekers. They made 11,098 applications. It was found that gay and lesbians were five per cent less likely to be offered a job interview in comparison to heterosexual applicants. This holds true in both private and public sector firms irrespective of the skill and experience of the applicants. Apart from this, it was also seen that the salary for gay males was 2.0 per cent less compared with those given to heterosexual men while lesbian women received 1.4 per cent less compared with heterosexual women.

The scenario was most common with males in jobs dominated by their gender such as accounting, banking, and management, the press release states. They also receive the fewest job proposals in such sectors. The study found that in 74 cases, the heterosexual men were offered jobs in place of the gay men though the skills and experience of both were very similar. In no instance did they find that only the gay male was offered an interview. The study observed similar scenarios with lesbians in female-dominated occupations. In the case of the latter, 63 heterosexual women were offered jobs in place of lesbian women though their skills and experience were the same.

Twelve student unions across Great Britain and Northern Ireland came together for the study. Of the 2,312 volunteering students, in the 21 year age group, Dr Drydakis matched 72 CVs of students who mentioned that they were actively part of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) society and 72 students with similar experience and skill had CVs that did not reveal their sexual orientation.

Dr Drydakis, Reader in Economics at Anglia Ruskin University, said that the discrimination against gays and lesbians in the labour market has not come to the attention of many due to the limited research carried out. Due to this lack of awareness, the firms have not been challenged for holding such biases. "Despite measures to encourage openness and discourage discrimination, including the introduction of the Equality Act of 2010, it is evident from my research that gays and lesbians are encountering serious misconceptions and barriers in the job market,” he stated. He also stated that this prejudice affects the firm as well since they lose out on potential talents.

For questions/comments regarding the article, you may email the writer at samrichardson.ibtimes@gmail.com.

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