The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has called for a fundamental cultural shift in the way black and Asian women are treated at work and by public policy makers.

The call follows a two-year investigation, which reveals for the first time the full scale of the workplace penalties faced by Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black Caribbean women.

Moving on Up: Ethnic Minority Women at Work has found that black and Asian women face significantly greater penalties than white women in the workplace. Those who want to work are finding it more difficult to get jobs, progress within them and are more likely to be segregated into certain types of work, despite leaving school with the same career aspirations as white girls and similar or better qualifications than white boys.

The EOC report suggests it's not too late to set the country on a different course. It found that 28% of employers surveyed said they intended to introduce steps to improve the recruitment and progression of black and Asian women. However, the same percentage said they were unsure what action to take.