The Booksellers Association has today published the findings of their third annual Membership Workforce Survey, in partnership with EA Inclusion. The survey remains a key component of the Booksellers Association’s ongoing long-term commitment to make bookselling - and the wider book trade and creative industries - more inclusive and representative of all demographics and communities.

Engagement with the survey was significantly up year-on-year with 403 individuals participating (an increase of 47%) from 263 different booksellers (an increase of 66%), signally the bookselling sector’s continued commitment to reflecting and learning from its workforce.

The survey revealed that bookselling retained strong representation for women, members of the LGB+ community and those who do or have identified as trans. Similarly, those who are neurodivergent or have a disability or long-term health condition remained above the national average.  

• 69% of respondents identified as female (vs 51% of the population*), flat YOY
• 24% of respondents identified as LGB+ (vs 3% of the population*), down from 29% YOY
• 3% of respondents identified as trans or had trans history (vs less than 1% of the population*)
• 23% of respondents are neurodivergent (vs 15^% of the population [ACAS]), flat YOY
• 25% of respondents identified as having a disability or long-term health condition (vs 18% of the population*), down from 28^% YOY

Whilst still above the national average, the survey saw a year-on-year decrease in respondents from a professional background and a sustained decrease from 2022 in respondents who attended an Independent or fee-paying school. Respodents who up grew up in England and particularly the South East continued to over index.

• 60% of respondents had professional backgrounds (vs 37% of the population [Social Mobility Commission]), down from 64% YOY
• 13% of respondents attended an Independent or fee-paying school (vs 7% of the population [Sutton Trust and Social Mobility Commission]), flat YOY and down from 17% in 2022
• 64% of respondents grew up in England, with the highest proportion growing up in the South East of England (15%)

A vast majority of respondents identified their national identity as British, or at least one UK national identity (English, Welsh, Scottish, or Northern Irish) with a minority identifying as a non-UK/ non-Irish nationality. Meanwhile, those identifying as being from an ethnic non-white minority group remained flat year-on-year.

• 79% of respondents identified their national identity as British, or at least one UK national identity (English, Welsh, Scottish, or Northern Irish)
• 
  8% identified with a non-UK/ non-Irish national identity
• 7% of respondents identified as being from ethnic minority groups - excluding White minorities (vs 18% of the population*), flat YOY

Aligning with previous surveys, a strong majority of respondents confirmed they felt included, respected, like they belonged and could be their authentic self at work and agreed that their organisation valued and is committed to diversity and inclusion and that progress was being made in addressing diversity and inclusion. On a wider scale, a smaller majority of respondents felt that the culture in the bookselling industry was inclusive but this did increase for the second consecutive year, suggesting an upward trend in this area. When breaking out the differences between ‘staff’ respondents from ‘owner’ respondents in the survey, further positive trends emerge - showing a continued, positive and generational upshift in representation within bookselling.

The survey revealed that staff are more likely to be LGBTQ+ (33% vs 15%), less likely to be public school educated (9% vs 17%), more likely to be non-white ethnic minorities (9% vs 5%) and more likely to be neurodivergent (27% vs 19% ) or have physical health issues (28% vs 21%).
In a new addition to the survey – both to respond to the rising cases of retail crime and to ensure booksellers wellbeing is recorded thoroughly and from all perspectives - respondents were asked if they had been bullied, received abuse and/or harassment or experienced violence from customers or staff.   *All comparison population figures unless otherwise stated refer to the England & Wales 2021 census.
The Booksellers Association is committed to using the survey’s findings as an essential foundation to facilitate tangible actions to reach its aims of -

1. Increase diversity at all levels within the bookselling sector, where individuals cam reach their potential through the equitable promotion and management of staff.
2. Build the skills and environment needed in order to foster a culture of collaboration, flexibility and fairness.
3. Identify and break down systemic barriers to full inclusion by embedding DEI into leadership, systems, processes and governance

To achieve these aims, The Bookseller Association will this year –

• Lauch a pilot mentoring programme for candidates from global majority
• Run DEI Training from BA Leadership through to Booksellers Membership
• Utilise a bank of role models from under-represented communities within this.
• Work with Creative Access to offer discounted listings on their job board

More information on these projects will be sent out by the BA to its members, and you can also express interest in taking part as a Mentor by emailing [email protected]
              
Meryl Halls, Managing Director of The Booksellers Association said: “We are delighted to continue our partnership with EA inclusion on our third Booksellers Association Diversity & Inclusion Survey, which provides us with invaluable data on the bookselling work force and essential knowledge to understand the diversity, representation and perceptions of bookselling from bookshop workers of all levels, identities, communities and backgrounds. We’re equally thrilled that participation in the survey continues to increase year-on-year and see this as a real testament to bookseller’s continued commitment to reflect and learn from its workforce to enact positive change.
 
 
We’re proud to continue to see many groups including women, members of the LGBTQ+ community and neurodivergent booksellers, and having a disability or long-term health condition, being represented strongly within the survey and see this an indication of bookselling being – and being seen as - a safe and attractive vocation for these individuals.
 
However, it is important to acknowledge that in other areas there is still room for improvement. Whilst it is positive to see - particularly within the next generation of booksellers - a shift towards more individuals from racially minoritised backgrounds  and those who haven’t come from a professional or public school background, we must reconcile this with both still being below the natural average and therefore acknowledge that more work needs to be done.
 
On this note, we are excited to announce the first stage of our new initiatives specifically designed to tackle these issues in response to the findings of the survey. This will involve working with Creative Access to  launch a pilot mentoring scheme for members of the global majority, DEI training for all levels of booksellers and working more closely with role models from under-represented communities within these projects.
 
During this time where all booksellers are facing immediate concerns and universal challenges to their business ,  that we tend to these immediate issues but never at the risk - or to the detriment – of our vital long-term goal of continuing to make bookselling as a safe, nourishing and inclusive place for its workforce as possible. As always, we must balance our responsibilities  and navigate events  to not be distracted  from continuing to enhance the strengths, acknowledge the challenges and make the necessary changes to make booksellers more representative, more accessible and more inclusive for the bookshops of today and tomorrow.”
 
Ben Runcorn, Operations Director at EA Inclusion said: ‘This years’ Booksellers Association Workforce  Survey provides the most accurate understanding of the bookselling workforce ever, with a significant increase in participation of individuals and organisations from previous years. It’s a useful benchmark of not only the diversity of characteristics that the workforce represent, but also their perceptions of inclusion, belonging, and their experiences while working in bookselling.
 
Despite the significant increase in participation, representation has remained relatively similar across many characteristics. Some of which should be celebrated, such as the continued high levels of representation and openness in some areas (e.g. LGBT+, disability, neurodiversity), and a greater proportion of people than ever before feeling that the culture in the bookselling industry is inclusive. Significantly, perceptions around diversity and inclusion improved across all measures in comparison to the 2023/24 survey.
 
While the data suggests that bookselling is increasingly a sector that is open for everyone, there continue to be some challenges across the sector. People from ethnic minority groups (excluding White minorities) and lower socioeconomic backgrounds continue to be underrepresented, and there is a substantial proportion of respondents (73%) who were degree educated (although this was lower than in previous years). While mental health has generally improved, almost one in four (23%) are currently experiencing mental health problems (down from 32% and 35% in 2022), which is still higher than national figures, and a lower proportion of those people experiencing mental health problems are open about it at work than in previous years.
 
Customer behaviour towards people working in bookselling is also a cause for concern, with one in six (16%) respondents having experienced abuse and/ or harassment from customers and a small but not insignificant proportion (2%) having experienced violence from customers in the last 12 months while working in bookselling.'