Opinion: From Our Readers - Time for industry to act on ethnic diversity

It is, however, a slippery slope when our urge to 'do the right thing' stems from the threat of legislation, rather than a fundamental understanding of the value multicultural employees bring to an organisation.

Why is there a lack of ethnic diversity in our profession? According to 2005 research, only 6.5 per cent of PR practitioners come from ethnic backgrounds.

Now is the time for our industry bodies to take responsibility and provide real leadership in this area.

We need to implement measures to ensure that our workforce is diverse - not to tick boxes, but to be able to communicate effectively on behalf of our clients.

- Bieneosa Ebite, MD, Bright Star Public Relations

Email letters (200 words maximum) to prweekletters@haymarket.com.