According to a new survey from the Future Forum, a research consortium created by Slack, some Black remote workers feel more valued and supported since transitioning to working from home.
The survey of 10,000 people showed that there was a 26 percentage point increase in Black respondents reporting that they are “treated fairly at work” from the same time one year ago.
Additionally, Black workers said their overall work experience has been improving.
“Going virtual levels the playing field,” said Ella Washington, a management professor at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. “Because everything is virtual, there’s less of this informal chatter we had in person. So that’s going to make anybody feel more like they belong, especially folks that are not usually in those conversations.”
Historically, Black workers (particularly Black women) have felt less valued and respected by their colleagues and often face racism, discrimination, as well as microaggressions that make it more difficult for them to advance in their careers.
Even more problematic, Black people still take up a small percentage of workers at the largest U.S. companies.
While the survey shows that remote working may have a positive impact on diversity in the workplace, some leaders are still failing to listen to what employees want and need from the post-pandemic workplace.
