‘Accentism’ is another prejudice says academic

People with regional accents should be protected from "accentism" alongside the fight against racism, ageism and sexism, it has been claimed.

Employers should state in writing that job applicants’ accents will not be used against them and application forms should request applicants to “state their accent” alongside other identities such as gender, sexual orientation, religion, age and race, according to Manchester University linguist, Dr Alex Baratta.

Dr Baratta, based at the University’s Manchester Institute of Education said: “We should acknowledge that any form of workplace discrimination, to include accentism, should not be tolerated in a society which seeks to be more inclusive.