Over a third of BAME employees told to adopt English name at work

More than a third of employees from an ethnic minority background in the Midlands have been told to change their name at work, to something more English.

New research shows many BAME workers have been ordered to 'adopt a western work name' by their boss at least once in their career - 32% in the East Midlands and 35% in the West Midlands.

Names weren't the only thing sacrificed, two in five BAME workers in the Midlands saying they changed one or more elements of their identity to fit in at work.

This included changing their appearance (41%), what they ate (25%) and adhering to other religious or cultural practices to fit in (23%).

The law says treating someone differently or less favourably than other staff, based on their race, is direct discrimination under the Equality Act 2010.

The research, commissioned by Slater and Gordon, found the majority of those BAME workers felt their career would suffer if they did not westernise their name.