Some 17.5% of practice certificate holders come from BAME groups (compared to 14.1% of the wider working population), but 10% of this number is made of Asian solicitors while only 3% of the profession would classify themselves as Black.
Almost a quarter of all solicitors in small firms are BAME, but in the largest firms only one in ten solicitors are BAME, according to the Law Society report, ‘Race for inclusion: the experiences of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic solicitors’, published this week. BAME solicitors are twice as likely as non-BAME solicitors to be sole practitioners, while BAME solicitors who are partners are much more likely to be working in smaller firms.
Breaking down the figures further, 8% of partners in 50+ partner firms are BAME, compared to 34% of partners in single-partner firms.
Nearly a quarter (24%) of BAME respondents reported severe or extreme stress compared to 18% of white solicitors.
There was also a visible pay and hours gap. BAME solicitors worked an average of 1.5 hours more per week full-time and 0.9 hours more per week part-time than their non-BAME counterparts.
In terms of salary, however, the average for non-BAME was £36.13 per hour compared to £27.01 for BAME solicitors.
Some 13% of BAME solicitors reported adverse discrimination and 16% reported bullying.
A third of Black African and Caribbean solicitors said they have experienced some form of discrimination or bullying in the workplace―the highest figure reported by any ethnic group.
Law Society president David Greene said: ‘George Floyd’s death and the Black Lives Matter protests shone a light on the racial inequalities and injustices that persist around the world.
‘The movement has undoubtedly increased the focus on these issues in the legal profession and provided a much-needed opportunity for reflection. The law can offer an incredibly fulfilling, varied career and diversity in the profession has continued to grow, but like every sector we need to have some frank conversations.
‘Our research shows that there are barriers for BAME practitioners at every step of their career―including the ethnicity pay gap, microaggressions and the need to fit a certain culture to progress. This often results in BAME solicitors voting with their feet and moving to in-house roles or to become sole practitioners because of barriers to progression and to reaching partnership in larger firms.
‘Our survey contains clear recommendations for firms―such as having open, honest conversations about race and what needs to change in their organisation, blind and contextualised recruitment, set targets for senior leaders and at key points in the pipeline, and a data-driven approach to diversity and inclusion.’
The research can be found at: bit.ly/3qEAZvX.
