The Good Jobs Project
Filling labour shortages with marginalised talent.
The Good Jobs Project is committed to transforming the way businesses approach recruitment, unlocking the full potential of purpose-driven models. By embracing inclusivity and intentionally targeting marginalised groups, we can bridge the gap between labour shortages and individuals seeking meaningful employment. Together, let's build a future where everyone has access to good jobs and businesses thrive.
About the project
The UK faces a pressing issue. Businesses across the country are struggling to fill over 1 million vacancies, resulting in lost opportunities and economic inefficiency. At the same time, many of the most marginalised groups of society are continually frozen out of good job opportunities. We believe there's a solution that tackles the labour shortage while creating a more inclusive society.
The Good Jobs Project brings together a diverse group of stakeholders including businesses, government bodies, investors, and support organisations. They are all united by a common goal: to bridge the gap between labour shortages and marginalised groups seeking employment opportunities.
By working together, we can unlock the untapped potential of marginalised talent, fuel business growth, and create a society where everyone has a fair opportunity to thrive.
Project timeline
Phase 1: 2022 to 2023
We undertook a year long study to uncover what actions would be needed to help incentivise and support employers to seek to intentionally recruit marginalised people, not just because it is a good thing to do, but because it drives business value. The findings are rooted in original research, including a survey of 500 hiring managers and over 30 interviews with HR professionals and recruiters.
This work was made possible with the kind contributions from: Severn Trent, Youth Futures Foundation, Aesop and other philanthropists.
Explore our reports:
Phase 2: 2023 onwards
Phase 1 was necessary but not sufficient to driving systemic change. Lives are not changed by finding out what works, but rather through ensuring what works is adopted by government, investors and business networks and implemented in a way that leads to marginalised people gaining and sustaining good jobs. We are working with government, networks and investors to educate them on how they can make it easier for employers.
We will post details of new initiatives as they are started.
Regional businesses working together to use recruitment as a tool to drive prosperity in the region.
Become part of the Good Jobs Project today and help create a more equitable and prosperous future for all.
We will post details of new initiatives as they are started so that you can stay up to date and track our progress.
Creating a supportive environment
While some businesses are already taking a proactive approach, most are not and diverse recruitment practices are not mainstream or equally applied to all marginalised groups.
Purpose-driven recruitment presents a sustainable solution to the labour shortage in the UK while promoting inclusivity and addressing systemic barriers. By adopting the following recommendations, policy-makers, investors, and support bodies can collectively create an environment where intentional and targeted recruitment of marginalised groups becomes the new normal.
Government
We call on the government to implement policy reforms that incentivise inclusive recruitment, support marginalised individuals, and ensure equal access to quality employment opportunities. Specifically:
1. Provide a 12 month employee National Insurance holiday to lower the financial risk for employers
2. Adopt our reform package to make the Apprenticeship Levy more accessible to marginalised groups
3. Develop a centralised knowledge bank to make it easier for business to recruit from marginalised groups
Business Networks & Support Bodies
Business networks and support bodies can play a pivotal role in facilitating knowledge-sharing, providing resources, and offering practical support to businesses as they navigate purpose-driven recruitment.
1. An ambitious initiative to improve business network coordination to make best practice common knowledge
2. Start and expand issue-based employer forums to maximise peer-to-peer learning, along the lines of EFFRR
Investors
Investors have the power to drive change by incorporating workforce diversity and inclusion metrics into Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) frameworks, thereby encouraging businesses to prioritise purpose-driven recruitment and creating a sustainable and inclusive economy. Investors and ESG frameworks should demand better data transparency, encourage businesses to prioritise diversity and inclusion, and integrate these factors into investment decisions.
1. Influential publications to provide more empirical evidence of the impact of expanding the ED&I agenda on financial materiality
2. Investor-focused campaign groups to encourage investors & ESG aggregators to prioritise employment of marginalised groups
3. The Workforce Disclosure Initiative, or similar, to create a platform to provide consistent and comparable investor data
4. Investors to build the case to increase younger and marginalised voices on boards
Challenges that employers face
Relatively high awareness of the opportunity is not turning into action
While many businesses are aware of the benefits of diverse recruitment, there is often a gap between awareness and tangible action. 70% of respondents felt that more than half of the marginalised groups we asked about could fit well in their organisation, yet only about 20% were taking steps to recruit from most of the groups. A quarter of respondents reported they had not taken any active steps to recruit from any of the groups.
Some groups are even more distant from good jobs than others
Disparities exist in access to quality employment opportunities among marginalised groups. These can also be amplified for individuals facing intersecting forms of marginalisation. We must address these specific challenges to ensure inclusivity. About 87% of employers said that groups such as single parents and ethnic minorities could fit well in their organisation, compared with 64% and 49% of employers reporting that people with mental health conditions and criminal records could fit well in their organisation, respectively. 28% of respondents said their organisation has taken active steps to encourage job applications to recruit young people, compared with 10% to recruit people who are or have been homeless or have a criminal record.
Investors and ESG frameworks need better quality data
For investors to be active influencers of business behaviour, they need greater evidence on the material impacts of these issues in their portfolios. While some research exists to date, there is not enough for the evidence to be widespread.
There should be further development of the standards and tools used to collect consistent and comparable data that informs investor decision-making
Improved data collection and reporting on diversity and inclusion practices are essential for investors the ESG frameworks they use to drive positive change and hold businesses accountable.
Organisations have different needs; there is no one-size-fits-all solution. No two businesses are alike
Different approaches are needed to incentivise and support business of different sizes, sectors, ownerships and more. 22% of micro businesses felt that grants would encourage them (10 points above average). 25% of small businesses felt that partnerships with specialists would encourage them (12 points above average). 7% of large businesses felt that more evidence would encourage them (14 points above average).
Ensuring candidates are work ready can increase diverse recruitment
Providing support for skill development and work readiness programs can enhance the chances of marginalised candidates successfully entering the workforce.
Opportunities to make it easier for employers
The Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (ED&I) agenda is pivotal
Prioritising equality, diversity, and inclusion in recruitment practices is crucial for unlocking the untapped potential of marginalised groups and bridging the labour gap. 79% of employers felt that diversity in the workplace, in relation to the groups in our survey, is beneficial to any organisation. 76% believed hiring people from such diverse backgrounds can help address labour shortages.
Inclusion needs to be a conscious and intentional effort
Many well meaning businesses believe that they are inclusive but are exclusionary in practice. More can be done to educate them so that they can embrace intentional and purpose-driven recruitment strategies to drive meaningful change and unlock the full potential of diverse talent. About a quarter of respondents said they recruited from diverse groups specifically to combat misconceptions and change societal mindset, demonstrating that working along marginalised colleagues can help to break down negative preconceptions.
Financial incentives are crucial to de-risking the recruitment of marginalised groups
Financial incentives and support mechanisms can encourage businesses to engage in inclusive recruitment practices, enabling businesses to make the necessary adaptations to ensure a fair and level playing field for all candidates and employees.
“Clients say they want more inclusive candidates but not at the cost of changing everything. That’s when the conversation disappears.” Graham Drew, Founding Director, Bamboo Recruitment
Marginalised and younger voices are leading the way
Individuals from marginalised communities and younger generations are at the forefront of advocating for inclusivity in the workforce, driving innovation and challenging traditional norms. Respondents under age 44 were 14% more likely than older respondents to think employers should be encouraged to hire workers from more diverse backgrounds (80% compared to 70%). Respondents under age 44 were 29% more likely than older respondents to prefer to hire from diverse groups in the UK than look abroad for workers (76% compared to 59%).
Businesses want to learn from other businesses
Peer-learning, knowledge-sharing and collaboration among businesses are invaluable for accelerating the adoption of inclusive practices. Learning from successful case studies and sharing best practices can drive systemic change.
“It’s a good moment. There’s a push from the government and there’s a pull from the employment market. Lots of people want to appoint prison leavers but they don’t know what to do. We got together and designed a workshop to just dish out everything we know and share the learnings we’ve made over the years.” Annie Gale, Head of RAW Talent and Apprenticeships, COOK
Partnerships with intermediary organisations can make a huge difference in supporting businesses to recruit from marginalised groups
Intermediary organisations play a critical role in facilitating connections between businesses, marginalised communities and individual candidates. Partnerships and collaborations provide training, guidance, resources, and support that can lead to successful and sustainable recruitment practices
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