Gareth Price appointed to Advisory Board for government taskforce

The taskforce, commissioned by HM Treasury and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial strategy and led by the The City of London Corporation is intended to engage employers and encourage action through raising the profile of socio-economic diversity.

A report from the Bridge Group, a non-profit consultancy that uses research to promote social equality, which A&O participated in, shows that employees from lower socio-economic backgrounds progress 25% slower than peers, with no link to performance.

Research from across ten law firms also shows that employees from lower socio-economic backgrounds take a year and a half longer on average to reach partnership, compared to their colleagues from higher socio-economic backgrounds.

As part of his role, Gareth will advise on new ideas, share examples of best practice and champion the case for boosting socio-economic diversity at senior levels. Gender, race and ethnicity and LGBTQ+ issues have all been a focus of A&O’s diversity and inclusion work in recent years and the firm is also putting an increased focus on social mobility and disability.

Commenting on his appointment, Gareth said: “The work of this taskforce is important and necessary and I look forward to being part of the Advisory Board. As a firm, here in the UK, we understand both the societal and economic benefits of improving social mobility and are asking ourselves what we can do each and every day to ensure our workplace is as inclusive as it can be.

“Our industry still recruits disproportionately those from affluent or privately educated backgrounds and I feel strongly that we should be more inclusive and representative of society.”