COVID-19 and ethnic Inequalities in England and Wales*

The economic and public health crisis created by the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed existing inequalities between ethnic groups in England and Wales, as well as creating new ones. We draw on current mortality and case data, alongside pre-crisis labour force data, to investigate the relative vulnerability of different ethnic groups to adverse health and economic impacts. After accounting for differences in population structure and regional concentration, we show that most minority groups suffered excess mortality compared with the white British majority group. Differences in underlying health conditions such as diabetes may play a role; so too may occupational exposure to the virus, given the very different labour market profiles of ethnic groups. Distinctive patterns of occupational concentration also highlight the vulnerability of some groups to the economic consequences of social distancing measures, with Bangladeshi and Pakistani men particularly likely to be employed in occupations directly affected by the UK's ‘lockdown’. We show that differences in household structures and inequalities in access to savings mean that a number of minority groups are also less able to weather short-term shocks to their income. Documenting these immediate consequences of the crisis reveals the potential for inequalities to become entrenched in the longer term

Teaching Index Numbers to economists

Economic statistics are frequently reported in the form of index numbers. This article considers how the field of Index Numbers should be approached in the teaching of a general economic degree. While the topic finds a natural home in statistics modules, it is emphasised that the area can also be referred to in the teaching of other areas of economics. It is also emphasised that the differences between Index Numbers theory and the practice of compiling economic statistics such as inflation can help students gain a better understanding of applied economic statistics. Methods for assessing learning in the area are also considered and available material to support teaching is also summarised

Which sectors are driving regional economic development? Comparing the effects of changes in employment in knowledge-based and consumption-based sectors on regional economic performance

Despite increasing as a proportion of economic activity, the role of consumption in regional economic development does not feature highly in the policies or debates. Instead, the focus is on the promotion of innovative activity and knowledge assets. Using NUTS 3 level data this paper examines the changing level of employment in consumption-based and knowledge-based sectors in order to assess the contribution of each to regional economic development

The role of digital technologies during relationship breakdowns

Relationship breakdowns are undoubtedly difficult. Access to and use of technology can exacerbate the situation. In our networked society, shared lives generate vast amounts of shared digital data which can be difficult to untangle, whilst social media can provide an outlet to emotions that can take a public and often persistent form. In this paper, we report on a qualitative study that considered the role of technology in the process of a relationship breaking down. Four main themes emerged in our findings: communicating about the separation, change in social status, shared digital assets, and moving on. Opportunities for design are identified in reducing misunderstandings via CMCs, enhancing social media, supporting intimacy in distributed families, and refining service provision

When work kills

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the rising public health phenomenon of workplace suicide drawing on comparative insights from the French and UK contexts. France has experienced what the media describes as a “suicide epidemic” in the workplace, with rising numbers of employees choosing to kill themselves in the face of extreme pressures at work. Design/methodology/approach The paper uses a comparative approach drawing on insights from the French context, in which workplace suicide is legally and officially recognised, to shed critical light on the UK context where workplace suicide remains a hidden phenomenon. Findings Whilst in France, workplace suicide is treated as an urgent public health phenomenon and data on suicides are collected centrally, in the UK, despite a deterioration in working conditions, suicide is not recognised in legislation and data are not collected centrally. Unless society recognises and document rising workplace suicides, we will be unable to deal with their profound human consequences for suicidal individuals, their families and society more widely. Research limitations/implications Research on workplace suicides in the UK and many other national contexts is hampered by fragmentary statistical data on this phenomenon. Practical implications The paper calls for greater recognition, analysis and monitoring of workplace suicide in the UK. Suicide should be included in the list of workplace accidents that are reported to the authorities for further investigation. In a context where workplace conditions are deteriorating, society need to recognises the profound human costs of these conditions for the individual employee. Social implications The paper has important implications for the contemporary workplace in terms of the contractual relationship between employer and employee. Originality/value Workplace suicide is an urgent, yet under-researched phenomenon. The paper brings a comparative and multidisciplinary perspective to bear on this phenomenon

Disseminating Research Information through Facebook and Twitter (DRIFT): presenting an evidence based framework

Background: The social media platform Facebook boasts over 1,284 million daily active users globally. It is also known that a large proportion of adults use the internet to seek health related information.Aim: to critically analyse the use of social media to engage parents of children with ADHD with clinical research findings.Methods: Observation and qualitative content analysis combined with Facebook insights was used to evaluate the levels of engagement and interaction with different types of research information.Results: Over 1100 people from 41 nations have engaged with the group. Sharing information through a range of Facebook functions was found to successfully achieve engagement and reach nationally and internationally for this demographic.Conclusion: Lay research users are eager to engage and understand clinical research and social media is an appropriate way to disseminate this. This article has proposed some methods and explanatory reasons for this phenomena.Implications for practice: It is known that social media can be used for effective communication. This article presents a much-needed evidence based framework that may be used by nursing and health researchers to successfully achieve this

Healthcare professionals' views on supporting young mothers with eating and moving during and after pregnancy: An interview study using the COM-B framework

Young mothers under the age of 20 often have poor nutrition and low levels of physical activity, adversely affecting outcomes for themselves and their babies. The aim of this qualitative study was to explore the experiences of healthcare professionals in supporting young women around eating and moving during and after pregnancy. Seventeen semi‐structured interviews were conducted with midwives, family nurse practitioners and health visitors involved in the care of pregnant and post‐natal mothers under the age of 20 in England and Wales. Data were analysed using thematic analysis and coded within the theoretical framework of the COM‐B model to three areas of capability, motivation and opportunity. For capability, participants were broadly divided between those who had specialist knowledge and training in communication skills to support health behaviours in this population and professionals reliant on tacit knowledge. For opportunity, having enough time was seen as critical because young women's difficult social contexts meant supporting improved health behaviours required relationships of trust to be built. For motivation, participants reported that supporting young women with eating and moving was part of their role. However, the decision to prioritise this support sometimes related to perceived need based on BMI and this was complicated as young women were still growing. Motivation was additionally connected to professionals’ own body experiences and health behaviours. Moving habits were less frequently discussed than eating as professionals described how young women tended to walk a lot in their daily lives or found that young women were not interested. Results suggest that to support eating and moving behaviours with young women, professionals need to be trained in communication techniques, enabled with the time to hold space for young women and be able to reflect on their own attitudes and beliefs to support a rounded model of health and wellbeing

Public Spaces Protection Orders: a critical policy analysis

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to critically appraise the Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) policy that was introduced by the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act (2014). Within a designated area assigned by the local council, PSPOs can prohibit or require specific behaviours to improve the quality of life for people inhabiting that space. Those who do not comply face a fixed penalty notice of £100 or a fine of £1000 on summary conviction. However, the practical and theoretical impact associated with the development of these powers has yet to be fully explored. Design/methodology/approach: Using Bannister and O’Sullivan’s (2013) discussion of civility and ASB policy as a starting point, we show how PSPOs could create new frontiers in exclusion, intolerance and criminalisation; as PSPOs enable the prohibition of any type of behaviour perceived to negatively affect the quality of life. Findings: Local councils in England and Wales now have unlimited and unregulated powers to control public spaces. We suggest this has the potential to produce localised tolerance thresholds and civility agendas that currently target and further marginalise vulnerable people, and we highlight street sleeping homeless people as one such group. Originality: There has been little academic debate on this topic. This article raises a number of original, conceptual questions that provide an analytical framework for future empirical research. We also use original data from Freedom of Information requests to contextualise our discussions

Who works for whom and the UK gender pay gap

This study reports novel facts about the UK gender pay gap. We use a representative, longitudinal and linked employer-employee dataset for 2002-16. Men's average log hourly wage was 22 points higher than women's in this period. We find 16% of this raw pay gap is accounted for by estimated firm-specific wage effects. This is almost three times the amount explained by gender occupation differences. When we decompose a preadjusted measure of the pay gap, we find less than 1 percentage point or a 6% share is accounted for by the gender allocation across high and low wage firms. In other words, only a small share of what is traditionally referred to as the `unexplained' part of the pay gap is explained by the differences between men and women in whom they work for

Job separation rates of immigrants and natives in the UK during the Great Recession

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to assess the probability of job separations of immigrants and natives in the UK before and during the economic crisis of 2008. Design/methodology/approach A mixed proportional hazard duration model with a semi-parametric piecewise constant baseline hazard is used on a data sample of inflows into employment. Findings It is found that the crisis increased the probability of exits to unemployment for all groups, while immigrants from the new countries of the European Union seemed to have the lowest hazard towards unemployment even after controlling for their demographic and labour market characteristics. More specifically, even when we account for the fact that they tend to cluster in jobs that are most vulnerable to the business cycle, they are still less likely to exit dependent employment than natives. However, this migrant group is adversely affected by the crisis the most. Research limitations/implications Possible implications of out-migration of the lower performers are discussed. Originality/value This paper makes use of the panel element of the UK Quarterly Labour Force Survey, and uses duration analysis on the individual level to assess the labour market outcomes of natives and immigrants in the UK