Poverty and ethnicity. Balancing caring and earning for British Caribbean, Pakistani and Somali People

This report involved qualitative and quantitative research with low-income Caribbean, Pakistani and Somali people regarding their experiences and preferences in balancing work and care. Existing policy on childcare and caring doesn’t appear to respond effectively to this challenge, while employers need to do more to enable well-paid flexible working and eliminate discrimination in recruitment and progression.

The report finds that: • discrimination is one of the key barriers preventing low-income ethnic minority people from balancing work and care; • existing good practice on reducing discrimination must be strengthened and expanded across public and private sector employers; • various benefits changes are likely to make it more difficult for many lowincome ethnic minorities to balance work and care; • there are not generic attitudes towards ‘caring’ within or across ethnic groups; and • gendered expectations compromise higher labour market participation among women, while men are less likely to fulfil caring responsibilities.