Penguin Random House | London, 07/16/2018

Penguin Random House UK Honored for Social Mobility

Penguin Random House has made the Top 50 of the Social Mobility Employer Index. This is a tribute to its efforts to improve social mobility and diversity. The British publishing group strives for both – through paid internships, by waiving the requirement for a university degree and personal referrals in job applications, and running programs for socially disadvantaged groups.

Waiving the requirement of a university degree for job applicants; paid internships; the dismantling of all kinds of barriers – Penguin Random House UK has done a lot in recent years to make the company an attractive and above all socially-minded employer. Its efforts have paid off: The British publishing group has been included among the top 50 U.K. employers who have taken the greatest action to improve social mobility in the workplace. To be precise, it ranks in 39th place. This is seen in London as a nice acknowledgment of the company's diverse efforts.

The Social Mobility Employer Index, an officially accredited report, is published by the Social Mobility Foundation and sponsored by the City of London Corporation. It assesses how successfully British companies ensure that they offer talent from all backgrounds open access and then develop them accordingly. More than 100 companies were included in the Index in 2018. They represent numerous sectors, and include banks, law firms, government agencies, engineering, trading and technology companies. They collectively employ over one million people.

And they do so in a circumspect manner, a fact that is true for Penguin Random House UK as well. In recent years, the group’s workforce has increasingly developed into a mirror of society as a whole, which in the end also benefits the publishing program and therefore the readers who, after all, are the constituents of society.

Specifically, Penguin Random House no longer requires applicants to have a university degree. To ensure fair access to job vacancies, Penguin Random House has also waived the requirement for any personal referrals in its application documents. The largest British publishing group also guarantees 450 paid two-week internships per year. No other British publisher offers such paid work experience. Interns who don’t live in London also receive a housing allowance. In addition, there are eight-week summer internships, which are paid the London Living Wage, and six-month editorial traineeships specifically for members of socially disadvantaged groups.

In order to get young people interested in a career in publishing, the company has launched the JobHack campaign – a series of interactive career workshops. They are offered in all parts of the country, especially in regions with low social mobility, and are aimed at 18- to 25-year-olds.

Val Garside, HR Director of Penguin Random House UK, said: “Great talent can come from anywhere, and having diverse teams that reflect a variety of backgrounds and communities means hearing different voices, ideas and perspectives. For too long, publishing has struggled to attract and retain people from different backgrounds. We’re working hard to change this - and I’m delighted that the efforts of so many people in our organization to become a more inclusive employer has gained this recognition.”

Alan Milburn, former Chair of the Social Mobility Commission, added: “There is a mood for change in the nation. As the Index shows, social mobility is becoming a cause for more and more of our country's top employers. It is welcome that they are stepping up to the plate. They are making these changes both because they see the social need to do so and because they recognize the business benefit that greater diversity can bring.”