New employees of the British public TV and radio broadcaster BBC can expect to be asked whether they were entitled to free school meals because of their social situation or whether their parents studied at university. At the same time, the number of BBC jobs for which employees will be selected based on blind CVs will increase. Not only candidates' names but also the the schools they attended will be removed from their CVs.
These and other measures are part of a new BBC diversity strategy that emerged last year following an initiative of the British government. In November 2015, Prime Minister David Cameron announced that in future state officials in the UK would be hired based on blind CVs in order to make the system fairer and prevent discrimination against candidates of other nationalities or different ethnic origin. In this way state administration should set an example to the private sector.
Data from 2014 indicate that the majority of BBC employees are white males who attended public schools (which are private, fee-paying institutions). That should now change. One objective, for example, is that by 2020 half the staff on screens and at radio microphones, as well as half those in managerial roles, will be women.
Basic steps of the BBC diversity strategy
- Data about the socio-economic situation of all new employees will be recorded. Such data will include information about whether they attended state or private school and whether they are the first in their family to study at university.
- Recruitment based on blind CVs will be extended to all key roles in the company. Names and schools of the candidates will be removed from their CVs.
- More apprentices from all social groups will be hired. At least 10% of all these jobs will be filled by candidates with disabilities.
- The BBC will provide training to potential employees from under-represented social groups on how to apply for a job.
- Job interview panels will be formed in a much more diverse way than before.
The BBC has also agreed with other British television companies ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 on establishing a system of monitoring diversity, which for the first time in history will show how TV companies are doing in this area.
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