“Actions speak louder than words, so where are the actions?” This was just one of an encyclopaedia of responses to EG’s second annual Race Diversity in Real Estate survey that questioned what the sector was really doing to combat discrimination. Lip service was a phrase used over and over in the survey’s responses.
More than a year after the Black Lives Matter movement saw businesses around the world make public statements on how they would combat racism, the results of EG’s latest survey show that little – if any – real progress has been made.
In fact, many of the survey results reveal a worsening situation.
In 2020, EG’s survey revealed almost 67% of ethnic minority respondents felt that racism was an issue in the real estate sector and close to 68% had experienced racism. This year, those figures had risen to almost 84% and 75% respectively.
Last year, some 64% of ethnic minority respondents said they did not believe that property was genuinely trying to increase BAME representation, with 61.4% saying the sector had a problem retaining BAME professionals. This year those figures were up to 71.2% and 76.2% respectively.
The picture painted by the survey is bleak. Some 81.5% of all respondents said that property was failing to attract ethnic minorities to the sector, with almost 90% saying property was failing to get BAME professionals into senior leadership positions. All respondents that identified as Black and Asian said real estate was failing to get BAME professionals into senior leadership positions.
Some 40% of respondents said there were no BAME individuals in senior positions in their businesses, with a similar percentage able to identify only one or two individuals.
More than eight out of 10 respondents said that property was not doing enough to stop racism in the sector.
All words, no action
While all of these figures are shocking, for many in the sector none will be surprising. A common tone through individual responses to the survey is one of despondency. A lack of hope or faith that anything will change. That there are too many words and not enough action. That a blind eye is turned and too few people speak up.
“There are microaggressions taking place within the workplace which can often feel uncomfortable and where you wouldn’t feel confident to challenge those offensive comments,” said one respondent. “There is also the fear of being labelled a troublemaker or sensitive and where your enjoyment in your working environment will suffer and, as a result, impact your progression in the business. I have been informed that it is best to stay silent rather than speak out because it is a battle not worth fighting for.”
Another said: “I don’t think there is adequate negative response for those who indulge in overt racism, or more covert forms. If a firm finds, for example, that a manager has a team where all the minority staff are at lower pay grades or have held the same position for longer than their counterparts without progression, questions should be asked about why that manager either cannot foster their minority talent so that they can progress and earn pay rises or appointed them below the level of their colleagues in the first place.”
Numerous respondents highlighted the racist tweet allegedly sent by an employee of Savills during the Euros as an everyday example of racism, saying how this could have been from any real estate consultant, investor or developer with numerous big-name companies singled out.
“It is not just a one off,” said a survey respondent, “it just more often happens in private with the result, at best, being an NDA and settlement and, at worst, marginalisation or a hostile work environment for those who speak out about abusive language or bullying in the workplace based on race. This is, in particular, the case when the aggressor is a director or senior leader.”
“Real everyday racism in property is ignored or brushed under the carpet, especially when senior white directors who bill highly do it,” added another. “Companies value money coming in more than what is morally right most of the time.”
The survey also highlights a clear difference in viewpoint as to how well – or poorly – the industry is doing between white respondents and ethnic minority respondents.
Almost one-fifth of white respondents did not think racism was an issue in real estate, compared with just 4.5% of Black respondents and 10.8% of Asian respondents.
Some 35% of white respondents thought the sector was genuinely trying to increase BAME representation, compared with 13.5% of Asian respondents and 18% of Black respondents. Just one-fifth of all ethnic minority respondents believed that property was genuinely trying to improve.
Driving change
So if the sector is still lacking in race diversity and still suffering from both overt and covert racism, what needs to happen to make sure that positive changes can take place?
For many respondents a comprehensive overhaul of recruitment practices and processes was highlighted as a potential way for real estate to improve BAME representation.
The RICS came in for particular criticism for not opening the doors to the sector to more people; HR processes came under fire for focusing on protecting companies rather than individuals; while the nepotistic nature of the industry was again highlighted as a key cause of a lack of diversity.
“The barriers to entry are becoming greater each year, with RICS-accredited masters courses increasing to a level that require an affluent background,” said a respondent. “In 2008, the MSc course at Reading cost around £11,000, currently the price is around £18,000 for tuition alone.”
“Law, medicine and finance professions, while not perfect, seem to have made more effort to attract non-white applications over the last 20 years,” said another. “The RICS has been far slower, and the perception of property remains that it is for white people with privileged and connected backgrounds.”
“As an industry we are in the habit of asking for referrals when recruiting, which in turn limits the pool we can pull from,” added another respondent. “We need to look beyond where we are comfortable. We need to engage with schools, and early years programmes, to encourage children to enter the industry as adults, before they are old enough to be put off by other opinions.”
“We must all stop recruiting graduates from Russell Group universities and search wider,” said another. “Our HR teams need better training. Our recruitment consultants should be given absolute quotas to fill when putting forward candidates. We should be looking at ways to get into schools which have more diversity in their pupil demographic and set up mentoring schemes with the schools and take an active part in inspiring schoolchildren and helping them to achieve their goals.”
“The reputation of the sector does not suggest diversity, and this is unlikely to make it feel like a viable option for many people of colour, except those who have a similar socio/economic background to the vast majority of those working in real estate,” wrote another survey respondent. “Attracting a broader mix of graduates to the sector, keeping them in the sector and then making space for them to grow into leadership roles will require some shift in how real estate behaves, especially socially. Networking and events that are centred around drinking and a social calendar built around traditional sports (rugby, golf, skiing, sailing, cricket) will not always feel inclusive to people of colour.”
Zero tolerance
Alongside a dramatic change to recruiting processes, survey respondents also wanted to see genuine action on racist behaviour. Many felt that leaders did not have the appropriate tools or resources to enable increased representation and that many were just paying lip service to D&I pledges.
“Zero tolerance for any racist behaviour is just a baseline,” said a respondent. “We need to become anti-racist and proactively work to ensure recruitment and promotion are transparent and fair.”
“I think that many are genuinely trying to increase BAME representation,” added another, “but also too many senior individuals think this can be achieved through corporate diversity and inclusion initiatives alone. Yes, such initiatives have their place, and can provide essential signals for their organisations but, ultimately, the test is on actual results and the experiences of individuals. This is lagging behind, and much more still needs to be done at an individual and behavioural level.”
Another said: “There needs to be recognition that the (white) boys’ club is not the future for property and that we are better for it. We also need to create a culture where people can challenge colleagues and feel safe doing so. Accusing people of racism or sexism is seen as more offensive than the actual crime and just triggers protective instincts in HR who seek to protect the firm and not the individual.”
Respondents wanted to see a collaborative approach across the industry to combat racism and the lack of diversity in the sector. This approach, they said, should include a shared set of principles, the development of accreditation systems and an active anti-racist sector-wide charter. Within individual businesses, respondents wanted to see more reverse mentoring programmes and senior directors impacted financially for not supporting D&I initiatives.
“There needs to be much more awareness within the industry at a senior level of the impact of racism on the sector,” wrote one respondent. “Senior management should be promoting initiatives to have a big conversation around race at a company and industry level. Through education we can change the bias that exists in the sector and, hopefully over time, see a change.”
Real estate is – as we have heard from numerous individuals, through our EG Race Diversity in Real Estate surveys and individual correspondence with EG – not a safe place for ethnic minorities. But, as our survey reveals, it can be. With education, empowerment and zero tolerance.
Click here to see the full results of the survey
See also: Named and shamed – how to address allegations of discrimination >>
To send feedback, e-mail samantha.mcclary@eg.co.uk or tweet @samanthamcclary or @EGPropertyNews
