Racist microaggressions and unfair treatment are still the norm for Black professionals in the workplace, new research has found.
Prejudiced attitudes and encounters take many forms and show up daily at work, forcing Black professionals not only to endure negative treatment, but to always be on the alert for it, according to a report by the think-tank Coqual.
Titled Being Black in The United Kingdom, the intersectional research sheds light on the treatment Black professionals experience in the UK – and the actions companies and their employees can take to promote greater fairness at work.
Black professionals are 81% more likely than their white counterparts to say their companies are “not at all” or only “slightly” fair, found the report, which surveyed 1,035 UK professionals, (385 of them Black, 404 White, 108 Asian, 107 mixed-race, and 31 of other racial groups).
More than two in three Black (68%) and more than half (58%) of mixed-race professionals surveyed said they have experienced racial prejudice at their current or former companies, compared to white (28%) and Asian (50%) professionals who say the same.
“The office is full of microaggressions,” one Black queer woman shared.
“You show me a Black person that hasn’t experienced a microaggression in the workplace and I’ll show you a Black person that just doesn’t know what a microaggression is.”
Microaggressions cited included colleagues mispronouncing an employee’s name, or assuming a Black person grew up disadvantaged or is unfamiliar with UK culture.
Black Africans were more likely to be labelled as perpetual foreigners by their colleagues than Black Caribbeans, the research found.
In interviews and focus groups, Coqual heard how these stereotypes serve as signals Black African professionals do not belong or should not stay in the UK.
“When I look at the Black representation past junior manager level, it’s nonexistent. It’s absolutely nonexistent.”
- Survey respondent
Worryingly, the Coqual report, which follows the think tank’s 2019 US study, Being Black in Corporate America, found that these experiences are having an impact on how long Black British people stay in a job.
More than half (52%) of Black women and 46% of Black respondents overall intend to stay at their companies for just two years or less, compared to 34% of white professionals.
“When I look at the Black representation past junior manager level, it’s nonexistent. It’s absolutely nonexistent,” one Black African professional said.
This is not for want of ambition – 63% of Black professionals surveyed said they are very or extremely ambitious – a higher percentage than any other racial group surveyed.
However, more than three in four (76%) Black professionals surveyed said Black employees have to work harder to advance, while only 30% of white professionals, 42% of Asian professionals, and 52% of mixed-race professionals say the same.
“Black professionals in the UK are experiencing harsh daily realities,” said Julia Taylor Kennedy, Coqual’s executive vice president.
“While many companies are having more conversations about race at work, they are not leading to much action – which can be incredibly dispiriting. In our study, we provide a framework for action.”
Coqual’s research follows another recent report that found many young Black people in the UK are changing their names for colleagues and don’t feel comfortable enough to wear their natural hair at work.
According to the survey of Black Gen Z young talent by the recruitment marketing agency, TapIn, 22% of young Black people have also changed their name on a job application to increase their chances of success, the Independent reported.
Three steps to tackling these issues in the workplace
On the basic of its research, Coqual has developed a framework for action – Audit, Awaken, Act – designed as steps that companies can take to foster diversity and inclusion and build accountability through their ranks:
Audit – Assess the current situation. Company leaders need to understand the current state of the Black professional experience and what inequities exist in the way Black professionals are treated, hired, evaluated, promoted, and compensated.
Awaken – Bring those insights to the rest of the organisation through thoughtfully designed conversations and resources for the benefit of all employees. Leaders and employees alike need to have open discussions and educate themselves about the barriers Black professionals face.
Act – With the knowledge and understanding developed in the first two phases, companies must build solutions that specifically target dismantling barriers for Black employees and establish accountability at all levels.