HAPPY NEW YEAR

In the year ahead, Britain’s Black and minority ethnic communities will face the greatest challenge for over a decade.

In the next few months the Coalition Government’s cuts will begin to bite and there is no hiding the fact that BME communities could be hardest hit. This is because historically too many within our communities have been either close to poverty or consumed by it.

Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Caribbean and African communities are particularly subject to poor housing, low paid employment or worse, high levels of unemployment. The accumulative effect, therefore, of a rise in VAT, huge local authority spending cuts – particularly metropolitan - and the reduction of civil servants across Whitehall and the wider public sector will disproportionately affect BME communities.  

It is well documented that over the last thirty years one of the main reasons why many more BME individuals sought work in the public sector rather than the private sector was due to the unfairness and the lack of opportunity within the private sector. Unfortunately BME public sector workers have tended to reside at lower pay levels and which means they are more vulnerable to large scale job loses.

The BME voluntary sector already thread bare, equally faces unprecedented challenges as wholesale funding streams dry up. Although OBV will proudly celebrate its 15th anniversary this July, it will like many organisations face a very uncertain future.

So what are we to do?

To any individual, family or organisation that is facing these tough challenges, the important thing is not to panic. You are unable to think clearly if you panic. Work out all your options starting from the worse case scenario. Seek advice from friends and experts. If you are faced with looking for a new job don’t be afraid to look beyond what you have done before. Aim high and be confident. And organisations may have to think about down sizing and or merging.

I wish I/we could start the New Year on a much brighter note, but the situation demands an honest assessment. Our communities will need determined individuals who refuse to be beaten and who will build a sense of pride and a vision that will allow us to come out stronger from this very difficult period.

The only way to navigate through these choppy waters is to do what our communities have always done during times like this. Excel.

 Happy New Year,

Simon Woolley