‘Labour can tackle class discrimination – by modifying the Equality Act’

As Orwell once wrote, “England is the most class-ridden country under the sun. It is a land of snobbery and privilege, ruled largely by the old and silly”.

This sounds as familiar today as it was when written in 1941, and can be applied across Britain, not just England. Class pervades every aspect of life in British society and shapes many things from life chances to education, career, health and life expectancy.

There has been much talk recently of smashing the glass ceiling – we can do so by modifying the Equality Act 2010 to include socio-economic class as a protected characteristic, similar to race, sex, disability and others.

People from lower income families have since records began been less likely to enter university. Those who were on free school meals on average earn less in work than others.

People with parents from professional backgrounds are significantly more likely to end up in professional jobs themselves. Of those from working class backgrounds who do end up in professional jobs there remains a pay gap of on average £6,400 less than others.

The health differences are stark – people in the working class community of Kensington in Liverpool live on average 13 years less than those in its London borough namesake.

Social mobility has largely gone backwards since 2010 and the situation has become even worse since Covid-19 due to the impact of the pandemic itself on work, income and education, in addition to more recent challenges posed by the rise in the cost of living. 

This is despite the ideals of most people across Britain. In the Social Mobility Commission’s 2019 poll 77% felt there was a large gap between the social classes in Britain and a majority believe that government should do more to improve social mobility.

There is also a growing worry that the intergenerational bargain that children will do better than their parents is breaking down. Around a fifth of UK adults are said to believe they’ve missed out on a job due to their background, and a heartbreaking 35% of young people think that lots of careers aren’t open to people from their background, with a similar number feeling their accent will hold them back.

When I have gone to schools to give careers talks, and ask the kids what they want to do when they are older, hands shoot up. Younger children are eager to tell you that they want to be footballers, actors, doctors, musicians, or any range of ambitious goals.

The dreams these kids have are shared by their parents and show that people are always looking forward to tomorrow and beyond, always hoping and dreaming.

It’s at some point in life however that Britain’s complex class system, with its unspoken rules and restrictions, is internalised by many and the barriers come up.

It’s this wasted potential that needs to be addressed. Those millions of people who aren’t doing what they otherwise would, because of obstacles and prejudice. Those many people who would otherwise be doing enormous good for society.

There has been a lot of positive energy around Labour recently with Keir Starmer’s pledge to place smashing the class ceiling, taking on inequality, and enabling every family to get on, at the centre of a Labour government’s mission.

Also in the party’s New Deal for Working People where it pledges to enact section 1 of the Equality Act, which has lain dormant since 2010, requiring public bodies to have regard to the impact of policies on socio-economic disadvantage. While welcome, the impact of this alone is limited and would not affect the private sector.

Such inequalities are so deeply embedded in the UK that a fundamental shift is needed. Making socio-economic class a protected characteristic in the Equality Act would deal a significant blow to classism and the obstacles it presents to all but those at the very top.

At present it is technically compliant with our employment and equalities laws to discriminate against job candidates due to their accent, wealth, or home address.

Offensive comments or actions that relate to poverty, someone’s class, or even negative class-based stereotypes informing decision making, are similarly not caught by discrimination laws.

This is before getting into the unseen barriers that we know exist – the unconscious bias that leads an interviewer to decide against a highly suitable working class candidate, or even the Conservative government diverting money from some urban areas to more prosperous towns.

Breaking the glass ceiling is important, but one part of the mission. As the Labour membership card states, “by the strength of our common endeavour… to create for each of us the means to realise our true potential”.

In order to help people realise their true potential, and their dreams and aspirations, a Labour government needs also to build a new glass floor, beneath everyone, higher and stronger than before. Making class a protected characteristic could contribute much to achieving this aim.

This may seem radical in UK terms but it is not in international ones – it would bring the UK in line with 20 European nations for one. It would reaffirm the fundamental values of fairness and inclusivity. Practically, it would be a modest change to our existing discrimination laws that would help provide security and respect for millions of people.