While Some Companies Recognize Holidays Celebrating Diversity, Employees Say There Is No Meaningful Action Taken by Companies to Assist Those Groups
After many years of increasing calls for tangible action to increase diversity and equity in the United States, American employees are still waiting for those changes to come in the workplace. In a new survey from Yoh, a leading international talent and outsourcing company and part of Day & Zimmermann, data reveals that less than one-third (28%) of employed Americans say their company has made strides in becoming a more diverse workplace over the past two years. Data also showed that fewer than 1-in-3 employees (30%) say their company acknowledges holidays related to race/ethnicities or gender (e.g., Black History Month, Women’s History Month and/or Hispanic Heritage Month) yet doesn’t take any specific actions to advocate for these groups. The survey was conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of Yoh, among 937 Americans ages 18+ who are employed full-time/part-time.
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When it comes to questions about race diversity in the workplace, the survey also found:
- Among Hispanic employees, 41% a say their company acknowledges holidays related to race/ethnicities or gender (e.g., Black History Month, Women’s History Month and/or Hispanic Heritage Month) but doesn’t take any specific actions to advocate for these groups. Among White employees, 30% agree and among Black employees, 27% agree.
- More than 3-in-10 Hispanic employees (32%) say their company talks about improving diversity and equity but does not follow through with any action. 20% of Black employees and 18% of White employees agree.
- Among Black employees, 25% say their company has improved diversity initiatives for positions at lower levels, but not in the C-Suite (e.g., Senior VPs, CFO, CMO). White (23%) and Hispanic (21%) employees feel similarly.
“Fostering diversity and equality in the workplace goes well beyond issuing a statement or adding some copy to a website. More than ever, it is critical for businesses to develop diversity, equity and inclusion programs to ensure that their talent acquisition strategies are free of inherent biases so they can build teams that are full of people with various experiences and from all different backgrounds,” said Emmett McGrath, President of Yoh. “Hiring individuals who bring different perspectives in all levels of business is proven to increase engagement, productivity and innovation. As a staffing firm, our goal is to not only embrace diversity within our own walls, but to help our clients create more inclusive workforces across the industries in which we serve.”
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Additional findings from this survey of job seekers include:
- Employed men are more likely than employed women say their company has improved diversity initiatives for positions at the lower level but not in the C-suite (27% vs 16% respectively).
- Employees with a higher household income are more likely to say their company has a dedicated Diversity and Inclusion Officer or other individual whose focus is to improve diversity and inclusion in the workplace. In fact, 33% of employed Americans with a household income of $100,000 or more say their company has a DE&I officer or individual whose focus is to improve diversity and inclusion in the workplace compared to just 20% of those with a household income of under $50,000.
- Women and men both believe there is an equal playing field based on gender in the workplace. Among employed Americans, 44% of women and 42% of men feel women are eligible for promotions, leadership roles and opportunities for success at the same rate as men at their company.
- Nearly 2 in 10 employed Americans (16%) say their company is less likely to hire someone with disabilities than someone without disabilities.
- Fewer than 2 in 10 employed Americans (16%) say when it comes to diversifying the workforce their company focuses more on hiring women and people of color and less on hiring people from the LGBTQ+ community.
For more insights on these survey results from Regina Blair, Vice President of Talent and Diversity and Inclusion at Day & Zimmerman, please check out Yoh’s podcast, Back to Work, by visiting https://anchor.fm/backtoworkpodcast.
To learn more about the complete survey findings and Yoh’s staffing solutions, visit www.yoh.com.
SURVEY METHODOLOGY
This survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of Braithwaite from April 21-25, 2022, among 937 who are employed full/part time. The sampling precision of Harris online polls is measured by using a Bayesian credible interval. For this study, the sample data is accurate to within + 2.8 percentage points using a 95% confidence level. For complete survey methodology,
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