Nearly one in three employees (31%) have experienced some form of microaggression or discrimination from their manager in the past six months.
The most common negative behaviours included comments relating to people’s age, working patterns, personal life and physical or mental health, as well as mispronouncing people’s names, a survey of 2,000 employees conducted for Mental Health First Aid England has found.
Nearly half (48%) experienced one or more forms of discriminatory or exclusionary acts from their manager in the past few months.
Discrimination from managers and colleagues
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The exclusionary behaviours reported included sarcasm, employees not getting credit for the work they had done, and managers favouring some colleagues over others.
Black or black British employees (72%) were the most likely to report discriminatory or exclusionary acts from their managers in the past six months, compared with 57% of Asian or Asian British workers and 47% of white British employees.
Younger workers were more likely to say that they have experienced such behaviours (66% of 18 to 34-year-olds compared with 38% of 45 to 64-year-olds).
One in seven said this type of behaviour caused them to feel like they could not be themselves at work.
The research has been published to mark Mental Health First Aid England’s My Whole Self Day today (12 March).
Chief executive Simon Blake said: “Everyone deserves to feel seen and valued at work. Equity, inclusion, and a sense of belonging are key to positive mental health and wellbeing in the workplace.
“As employers, if we create cultures where people can bring their whole self to work, without fear of judgement, all the evidence shows we will see strong performance and excellent productivity. This isn’t simply a nice to have, it is a business imperative. Diverse teams mean innovation and excellence and according to Forbes deliver 60% better results.”
Dr Melissa Carr, director of the World of Work Institute (Equity, Diversity & Inclusion) at Henley Business School, said: “Microaggressions and discrimination can considerably undermine people’s sense of psychological safety and wellbeing at work, and it’s concerning to see how common these instances are in the UK.
“This research is a timely reminder of the vital role managers and colleagues play in building supportive work environments that allow people to bring their whole self to work. Employers have progress to make to translate equity, diversity and inclusion policy into meaningful practice throughout the workplace, creating environments where microaggressions and discrimination is recognised and called out.”
The survey results chime with research from Aalto University School of Business in Helsinki, which showed language-based discrimination – where people suffer a disadvantage because they do not have the same first language as other employees – is prevalent both in the office and remote work.
The study found that discrimination is more subtle when migrant workers work remotely, as it is easier for employees to have separate meetings virtually.
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It is also easier for discrimination or exclusion from conversations to go unchecked.
“Consequently, migrant professionals became more invisible to their co-workers in virtual spaces, remaining in their own English-speaking bubble, out of sight and out of mind,” said doctoral candidate Hilla Back.
