Shocking survey highlights hair based discrimination in the workplace

Shocking survey highlights hair based discrimination in the workplaceShocking survey highlights hair based discrimination in the workplaceIn order to effectively unpack the impact of hair based biases in a professional setting, CROWN conducted a massive research survey of 2,000 American women between the ages of 25 and 64.Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair, or the CROWN Coalitionis an organization co-founded by DOVE, that intends to end race-based discrimination in the workplace. Alongside the personal care brand, the coalition is composed of founding members of the National Urban League, Color of Change, and the Western Center on Law and Poverty.Follow Ladders on FlipboardFollow Ladders magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and moreThis ground-breaking research provides evidence of what we have always knownanecdotally that black women experience discrimination in the workplace due to their natural hair. We are ral lying ur leaders, policy-makers and ur communities to engage on this important issue, said Marc Morial, CEO of the National Urban League.The key findingsHairstyles that bear a strong association with the African American community, namely locks, braids, and Bantu knots were consistently ranked the lowest for job readiness. However, when participants were shown pictures of white women and black women, sporting the same hairstyles, white women were found to be 25% more likely to be deemed job-ready than black women, even when the hairstyles were exactly the same.Black professionals were 30% more likely to receive a formal grooming policy in the workplace, at both the application process and the orientation phase. African American women additionally reported being 80% more likely to change their natural hair to accommodate social expectations and norms at work and by and large, women of color reported fearing scrutiny and discrimination when expressing their natural beauty in the workp lace significantly more than the other respondents.This year the New York City Commission on Human Rights, instituteda law that precludes biases based on hairstyles by employers and schools. The commission said they were motivated by a desire to repudiate the notion that traditional black hairstyles are as a rule hygienic, messy or simply not suited for a professional setting.More recently CROWN and Dove came together to fund The CROWN Act, which recently passed the CaliforniaSenate. The bill aims to ensure traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and style, will be protectedfrom discrimination in the workplace and in charter/public schools. The bill is on route to be reviewed by the CaliforniaAssembly this year. Esi Eggleston Bracey, who is the Executive Vice President, and chief operating Officer at Doves parent company, is both motivated and disheartened by the results of the recent research study. Braceyexplained,As this research highlights, there is more w ork to be done, but we are committed to ensuring each and every one of us sees ourselves as beautiful and celebrates our diverse array of shapes, sizes, skin tones, ethnicities, hair textures, and styles and more.You might also enjoyNew neuroscience reveals 4 rituals that will make you happyStrangers know your social class in the first seven words you say, study finds10 lessons from Benjamin Franklins daily schedule that will double your productivityThe worst mistakes you can make in an interview, according to 12 CEOs10 habits of mentally strong people