New Gallup Study Shows One in Four Black Workers Have Faced Discrimination At Work

This new Gallup Poll is proof that discrimination in the workplace is alive and well.

Last summer the national conversation on racism and injustices in America hit the forefront in the wake of the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmad Arbery, and countless others who lost their lives all because of the color of their skin.

Today, a study released by the Gallup Center on Black Voices finds that “about one in four Black (24%) and Hispanic employees (24%) in the U.S. report having been discriminated against at work in the past year.”

The findings come from a large-scale Gallup web survey conducted from Nov. 6, 2020, to Dec. 1, 2020, with more than 8,000 respondents surveyed including over 3,500 white workers, more than 2,000 Hispanic workers, and over 2,000 Black workers.

Studies show the experiences of Black men (27%) and Black women (23%) are close. Income also plays a part within Black employees in households earning less than $90,000 (24%) annually and even those earning $90,000 and up annually (25%).

Other significant factors found in the survey include age. The study reveals that Black workers younger than age 40 (31%) are almost twice as likely as those who are age 40 and above to report having experienced discrimination in the workplace within the last year. Previous findings by the Center have shown that young Black adults also experience microaggressions at much higher rates.

A follow-up question geared toward those who shared their experiences with discrimination shows that 75% of Black workers indicate that the discrimination received was based on their race or ethnicity — a much higher figure than their Hispanic (61%) and white (42%) counterparts.

The 75% figure in regards to Black employees remained the same across age, gender, and income subgroups with similar groups of each who shared the discrimination they faced within the last 12 months was indeed because of race.

“Gallup has found that what everyone in the world wants is a good job,” said the organization within the report. “But that pursuit is made harder for Black Americans, of whom one in four say they experience discrimination on the job.”

The real question now is what initiatives employers will take moving forward to ensure their work environments are places where everyone feels they belong.

For more information on Gallup’s findings, click here.