Introduction
Research Questions
- How might workforce development program participants encounter racial bias when looking for work and in the workplace?
- What steps can workforce development practitioners take to address racial bias present in employment processes and help participants with strategies to overcome barriers?
This brief considers racial bias from the perspective of workforce development practitioners who work with people seeking employment. Drawing on a comprehensive review of research on racial bias in hourly-paid jobs, the brief describes how racial bias can occur when implementing basic employment processes — hiring, job assignment, and performance appraisal — that affect the employment success of program participants of color. The brief also outlines a set of practices based on research that workforce development practitioners can adopt in their efforts to help reduce racial bias for their program’s participants.
Purpose
This brief aims to inform workforce development practitioners about how program participants may encounter racial bias in procedures such as hiring, job placement, and promotion. It also provides strategies for practitioners to engage employers to change employment processes and help participants overcome racial bias that they may encounter in the lower-wage labor market.
Key Findings and Highlights
Recruiting and Screening Job Applicants: Where and how job openings are publicized can affect whether program participants of color learn about the job and apply for it. Once applications are submitted, managers involved in hiring may screen applications in ways that disadvantage qualified job seekers of color.
Initial Job Assignment: Long term differences in compensation by race and gender can be traced to the types of jobs in which workers are placed at the point of hiring. In many cases, women and workers of color are overrepresented in lower paying or part-time roles.
Performance Assessment, Training, and Retention: Racial bias shows up in who receives mentoring and training while on the job, in addition to how performance is evaluated.
There are possible strategies that workforce development practitioners can take to help limit the impacts of racial bias on program participants.
Methods
This brief draws from a comprehensive literature review on racial bias in hourly-paid jobs and on existing research to outline a set of practices workforce development practitioners can implement to address racial bias that program participants may encounter during their job search and employment.
Recommendations
Geared towards workforce development practitioners, this brief recommends several strategies that can help program participants overcome racial bias throughout hiring, placement, and promotional processes.