We are entering the second decade of the second millennium of an era of heightened awareness and accountability, and although human evolution should be at the point where racism, sexism, ageism, and all the -isms no longer create impasses in our ability to work and thrive together, sadly, this is not the case.
The good news is that if we humans are intelligent enough to create nonhuman intelligence, we certainly can work through equity issues in the workplace.
2020 has been a banner year for conversations about racism. Amazon has not been able to keep titles by authors such as Isabel Wilkerson, Ibram X. Kendi, Robin, DiAngelo, and Ijeoma Oluo in stock. Major newspapers including the New York Times and the Washington Post have begun capitalizing the “b” in Black. And the Black Lives Matter movement, with participants from many races, genders, sexualities, ages, and more, took on a life of its own. The hope is that these conversations will start happening with seriousness and intent at work. After 30 years of workplace diversity training and HR anti-discrimination clauses in employee handbooks, let’s start putting the policies into practice. Let’s change the policies that are not working and create more inclusive ones.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion should serve as your umbrella from discrimination and oppression. This is the future of work in America.
It’s not good enough just to hire Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). Those who have been marginalized need to be mentored, though not over mentored, and presented with leadership opportunities. Mentors who are willing to support the marginalized must also be willing to check their biases when creating mentor-mentee relationships. Exclusive workplaces, like the smoky boardrooms of the bad, old past, should cease to exist. Creators of such powerful spaces must be willing to recognize that having a seat at the table is not enough for marginalized populations, we want to have an impact.
Creating a more inclusive environment needs to be the new normal. What does this look like?
- You will see a truly diverse workforce with equal numbers of women and BIPOC at all levels of an organization.
- An HR department will regularly survey employees and ask pointed questions about inclusion and equity and discuss the results.
- This department will work to create strategies to address inequities and the problems they create.
Discrimination in the workplace can be nuanced and subtle, but even what might be considered slight infractions should be considered.
If you have a manager who regularly dismisses or outright ignores the administrative staff, someone from HR should be creating systems of support with that manager. If a manager has a track record of letting go more BIPOC, LGBTQIA+ persons, and female-identified persons than straight white men, they should be reviewed. Likewise, if one person or group of persons continually receives more perks, funding, or advancement opportunities HR should not only ask “Why?” but answer this question, then do something about it.
Finally, we need to remedy pay equity.
This is not only the most important but also the most difficult issue. According to a report put out by the Economic Policy Institute earlier this year, Non-Whites (especially Black People) – White wages gaps are worse now that they were 20 years ago—and this was across the board, from those with no high school diploma to high-school degrees to college degrees to advanced degrees. This is unconscionable. White people can keep filling their anti-racist bookshelves, but until BIPOC identities and Whites are making the same amount of money for the same amount of work, we will not be able to achieve true equity in the workplace.
That is not to say the goal is insurmountable. These decisions are made in the boardrooms, and the directors of boards need to commit to an equitable future for all.
Interested in putting action behind your values? Check out our newest workshop series:
The More Inclusive New Normal: A DEI Series for People Leaders
We’ve designed a one of a kind program, in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, to help companies deliver on the imperative of increasing inclusion and decreasing racism in their organizations. All sessions will be designed and facilitated by Cheryl.
To learn more or join the waitlist, enter your information here
