Suzanne Potter, producer/reporter, California News Service, a bureau of Public News Service.
New research finds Black working women still face rampant discrimination in the Golden State.
The California Black Women’s Collective Empowerment Institute commissioned a survey of 452 Black women. Almost 60% reported experiencing workplace racism or gender discrimination in the past year.
Shakari Byerly, managing partner of EVITARUS Research, conducted the survey.
“Nearly half feel marginalized, excluded from or passed over for work opportunities,” Byerly reported. “Only 16% strongly agree that opportunities for leadership and/or advancement in their workplace are available to them.”
Among respondents, 59% reported being somewhat satisfied with their jobs, but 38% said they were unsatisfied with company leadership and work culture. They also cited microaggressions, wage disparities, and lack of mentoring or access to leadership roles.
Byerly noted one-third of those surveyed said they do not feel supported by their supervisor at work.
“They were subjected to stereotypes, were talked down to, or subjected to disrespectful communication at work,” Byerly explained. “And 38% say they were accused or thought of as an angry Black woman.”
The report called on the state to enforce pay equity, expand antidiscrimination protections, and ensure workplace accountability. They called on companies to invest in Black women’s leadership development and eliminate bias in workplace culture.
