Today (12 January) the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, has announced that over 100 of the largest companies in Britain have signed the Business Compact, to try to spread employment opportunities more fairly, and to promote best practice among businesses. This is part of the Social Mobility Strategy, which Nick Clegg launched in April 2011.

Businesses and organisations who have signed the Compact have agreed to:

• Offer support to communities and schools, including mentoring and skills support, to help raise young people’s aspirations
• Advertise work experience placements fairly through a number of channels, as opposed to only through informal contacts
• Make internships “open to all”, transparent, and to offer financial support (for example by paying accommodation, transport expenses, and/ or the National Minimum Wage)
• Eliminate inappropriate screening within application processes, so as to reduce discrimination and unfair recruitment

Among the Compact’s signatories are approximately 20 major finance firms, 10 high street retailers, 11 well-known consumer brand manufacturers, 10 major law firms and 8 well-known energy firms.

Welcoming the Compact, Inclusion Director of Policy Tony Wilson said:

“Young people are facing the toughest jobs market in a generation, so getting good quality work experience and paid internships is more important than ever. We also know that recruitment practices can discriminate against the most disadvantaged. So the Business Compact is a step in the right direction. The challenge now is to get more and more employers signed up.”

Inclusion would like to see the Compact go further in four areas, so that:

• Every single public sector employer signs up to the Compact – so that the Government and its agencies use name-blind applications, advertise all work experience and internship opportunities, and engage in schools and communities
• Suppliers to the public sector sign up, and to see this built into future contracts
• The links are made to the Youth Contract – so that we expand opportunities for young people as well as share them more fairly
• The law is clarified to make clear that internships should be paid in line with National Minimum Wage legislation

Inclusion’s conference ‘Tapping into talent: putting employers at the heart of the Work Programme’ on 26 March will bring together employers, Work Programme providers and other partners to explore these issues further.