Hiring Bias, Discrimination, Higher Unemployment Rates, and Other Job Search + Career Facts That Disproportionately Affect African-Americans
For my 15th birthday, there was nothing that I wanted more than a J-O-B. Like most teenagers that age, I was sick of asking my parents for money for the things I wanted to buy.
I wanted to buy my own clothes, indulge in all the lip glosses that the beauty supply store had to my heart’s content, and pay to get my own nails done every two weeks without having anyone tell me “no” because it was “unnecessary”.
I craved the independence that Destiny’s Child sang about on the radio and in the headphones of my Walkman. After getting my worker’s permit, my mom taught me how to create a resume and I was off to the job search races.
In hindsight, my innocent little 15-year-old black self had no clue what I was getting into. I couldn’t have predicted the discrimination, hiring bias, microaggressions, and - to put it bluntly - utter bullshit that I would go through as a Black woman in corporate America.
And from browsing social media and having chats with other Black professionals, I wasn’t alone.
WE HAVE TO WORK TWICE AS HARDER AND BE TWICE AS BETTER ONLY TO GET HALF AS FAR
If you are Black or a POC, you’re probably familiar with the “you have to work twice as harder and you have to be twice as better” speech. While my parents gave me this spiel countless times as a kid, I’ll be honest in saying it didn’t click until I got older.
The saying goes that when it comes to being a successful Black person in America, “We have to work twice as hard to get half as far as our white counterparts.” Both Michelle and Barack Obama have mentioned this phrase in many of their speeches and addresses across the world.
If you don’t know the history of this phrase, it originated from a speech delivered by Booker T. Washington in 1895 to the Cotton States and International Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia. Washington believed that African Americans could achieve equality and overcome oppression with the “relentless pursuit” of education, hard work, and investing in themselves and business.
But while Blacks have done this, we’re still being held back and barred from wealth and success by systems, biases, and racism that prevents us from reaching the achievement levels of our white counterparts.
In 2020 it was reported that Blacks are more likely to earn a postsecondary degree and the number of African Americans who earned graduate degrees doubled from 1996 to 2016. Yet despite this, only 3.2% of African Americans hold senior leadership positions at large companies in the U.S., and a disappointing 0.8% of African Americans hold a CEO position at F500 companies.
COMMON CHALLENGES BLACKS FACE IN THE WORKPLACE
Imagine:
Someone asking if they can touch your hair
Intentionally mispronouncing your name every day
Being told you speak well for “Black person”
Getting written up or fired for the same things you see your non-Black coworkers do
Being denied growth and advancement opportunities while a non-Black person with less experience receives promotions and special projects even though you’re more qualified
Being talked over or even flat out ignored when you’re the only person of color in the room
Having your competence or intelligence questioned regularly
Experiencing blatant racism and reporting it to HR but nothing happens
Reporting to a manager or supervisor who has it out for you simply because you don’t look like them
Sounds infuriating and toxic, right? But sadly, these are just a few of the situations and circumstances Black people experience every single day at companies they work for.
If you’re a Black or Brown person reading this, I’m sure you’ve encountered at least one of the things listed above. As for me, I’m sad to say each and every single one of those examples has happened to me.
While corporate workspaces are starting to become more inclusive, equitable, and culturally aware, the fact remains that offices, headquarters, and boardrooms have been battlegrounds and sources of trauma for Black professionals for decades.
Common burdens and challenges we’re forced to deal with for the sake of providing for ourselves and feeding our families include:
Unequal pay
Unfair treatment
Racial bias
Lack of advancement opportunity
Racism
Discrimination
The playing field is almost never leveled and oftentimes isn’t in our favor; it almost seems as though we’re set up to fail from the moment we accept the job.
The hurdles mentioned above have been to blame for millions of Blacks not reaching their full potential, giving up on their dreams, and doubting themselves altogether.
On the flip side, those same challenges are the reason for African-Americans - particularly Black women - becoming the largest and fastest group of entrepreneurs.
5 STATS + FACTS ABOUT WORKING AND JOB SEARCHING FOR AFRICAN-AMERICANS
Blacks don’t just face difficulties while employed, we also experience setbacks and disadvantages while unemployed, during the job search, and when negotiating our pay. Here some stats and facts you should know.
1. BLACK WOMEN, WHILE THE MOST EDUCATED, ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE UNDERPAID
Compared to every dollar earned by a white, non-Hispanic man, Black women earned only $0.61 - roughly 38% less. It’s no secret that pay equity is a global issue as a result of sexism, but when broken down by race and ethnicity the disparities are even more glaring.
Even though Black women outpace White women, Latinas, and other ethnic groups in receiving post-secondary degrees, they are more likely to be severely underpaid in their fields and industries.
2. BLACK WORKERS HISTORICALLY HAVE HIGHER LEVELS OF UNEMPLOYMENT THAN THEIR WHITE COUNTERPARTS
Even in a good economy where there are plenty of jobs to go around, Blacks are still more likely to be unemployed than their white counterparts. An analysis of a report tracking the unemployment levels of Blacks to Whites from 1973 to 2019 clearly illustrates that African-Americans have, and continue to, lead unemployment numbers regardless of age, gender, and education level.
3. HIRING DISCRIMINATION AGAINST BLACK WORKERS HASN’T CHANGED IN THE LAST 25 YEARS
Social media can give the illusion that we’ve tackled discrimination and bias by the horns to make great strides when it comes to equality and inclusivity. Although companies took to channels like Facebook, Instagram, and other platforms to take a stand against racism and discrimination, the fact remains that anti-black hiring discrimination practices haven’t changed since 1989.
4. WHITES RECEIVE, ON AVERAGE, 36% MORE CALLBACKS DURING THEIR JOB SEARCH THAN BLACKS
The anxiety that comes with having an “ethnic” name and having to worry about applying to jobs is real. Names and other bits of information can easily give away a person’s race or ethnicity which can lead to swift rejection due to discrimination and bias. This happens even in circumstances when the Black candidate has equal or greater experience.
5. DESPITE HAVING HIGHER UNEMPLOYMENT RATES, BLACKS ARE LESS LIKELY TO RECEIVE UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS AND ASSISTANCE
The facts listed above have led to Blacks turning to many part-time, uncontracted, and gig jobs to make ends meet. The problem with this is that these roles aren’t typically eligible for unemployment.
Because of this, thousands of African-Americans lost their jobs or were no longer able to work due to the pandemic but were unable to receive unemployment assistance. Research shows that only 13% of Black workers received unemployment benefits compared to 33% of white workers who were more likely to have traditional jobs.
AVOID RACIST AND TOXIC WORKPLACES BY DOING YOUR RESEARCH
Racist and discriminatory workplaces can take a toll on the psyche of Black workers. Many African-Americans admit to not feeling good enough, having imposter syndrome, and doubting themselves.
To make sure you don’t end up in this type of work environment, do your research and digging before accepting - or even applying to - the job. Here’s how:
Use the LinkedIn search feature to view company employees. If there are no people of color, that could be a red flag
If you do find a person of color that works for the company, message them to discuss their experience
Read through Glassdoor or Indeed reviews from past employees
Google the company to see if anything controversial or eye-raising pops up
Ask the hiring manager or recruiter about their diversity and inclusion practices
If you’re already working at a company where you’ve experienced racism and discrimination, LEAVE. No job is worth being disrespected or treated like crap for a paycheck.
There are so many companies that would be lucky to have you and your beautiful brown skin.