Racial discrimination?  — Not in my company! 

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Content provided by legal writers

 

  • Racial discrimination is illegal in most countries, but non-white workers are still facing prejudice in many companies. 
  • Although most workplaces consist of a multi-color and multi-nationality workforce, some business policies and guidelines are designed to exclude non-whites. 
  • Racial harassment still happens in the workplace, with the culprits forcing non-white workers to quit. 
  • If a non-white person uses HR structures to stop bullying or other abuse, they are often victimized. 

Racial discrimination is frowned upon in the business environment and outright illegal in most countries. But have all businesses conformed to promoting inclusivity in their everyday operations, or did they get better at hiding the cases of racial prejudice that exist in their corporate culture? The thing about racial discrimination is that it can still happen even if a company hires employees from various races and appears to be inclusive of all. Bias can show in more subtle ways than an outright refusal to employ anyone who is not white. Let’s examine four ways a company can be racist without raising any red flags or anyone noticing their underhanded methods. 

Direct discrimination 

Although the direct refusal of employment for people from a different race or ethnic background is mostly a thing of the past, some companies still practice direct discrimination. For example, suppose a person other than Caucasian applies for a position. In that case, the HR manager may overlook their application with an excuse that they would not fit into the company culture. The position is subsequently given to a white applicant with similar skill and experience as the non-white person. 

Indirect discrimination 

Some companies set up internal rules and policies in such a way as to exclude certain racial or ethnic groups. To illustrate this, let’s examine the freelance online writing sector. It is rife with indirect discrimination. For example, most writing employment ads invite exclusively native English speakers to apply, thereby excluding all non-native English speakers. Such practice excludes many people from other races with English as a second or even third language. Yet, these non-English natives can speak and write fluently in English, just like a native speaker. But, they are overlooked and thereby discriminated against. 

Racial harassment 

Non-white employees are vulnerable to abuse by their white co-workers. They may have to put up with transparent insults or other ways where white employees create an offensive environment for the non-white workers. For instance, a white boss may refuse to grant a worker from another race or religion leave to attend a religious ceremony despite accumulating many leave days. Or an employee may be continuously asked intrusive questions about their customs or spiritual practices, violating their dignity. Many times the only way to make the abuse stop is to resign from the position. 

Victimization 

Another way racial discrimination raises its head is through the victimization of non-white workers when they try to defend themselves against bullying or other abuse. For example, suppose a non-white employee who a white co-worker previously abused attempts to protect themselves using the company’s grievance procedure and escalates the incident. They are in turn ostracized by other employees or even suspended, pending the outcome of the grievance hearing. In this example, the company punishes the victim for defending themselves, which amounts to racial discrimination. 

There is no doubt that these practices still exist in the modern workplace. Have you never heard of such incidents in your company? — Wonderful, you may be working for a genuinely inclusive and non-discriminatory organization. However, for most of us, these examples happen daily. Such discriminatory behavior is condoned and accepted as part of the usual way to behave in an office.? Sometimes the offenders themselves are unaware that their behavior is discriminatory.? It is time for us to wake up and think about how we treat people from other races. 


This content is provided by an independent source for informational purposes only and does not contain legal advice. Consult an attorney or financial advisor when making decisions. This information is provided by legal writers and does not reflect the views or opinions of The Daily Sundial editorial staff.