Your African American Employees Are Not Okay.
The police brutality and senseless deaths of African Americans in this country has been disturbing to watch and hear. Over and over again, we continue to see our country reverse itself 40 years. No one would have thought that we would be witnessing riots, looting, protests, anger and frustration, and so much unexplained tragedy in 2020.
African Americans have endured so much pain and just can’t seem to eradicate the structural and systemic racism, stereotypes, and killings of people just because of the color of their skin. In a recent interview, Doc Rivers said it best, “we keep loving and loving this country and this country is failing to love us back.” This simple, but true statement continues to resonate with so many of the African American colleagues we work with each day. It has been overwhelmingly difficult for employees to come to work and show up cheerfully every day, perform at their highest level, and try to persuade senior leaders to make change in their organization while simultaneously deal with the racial justice outside of their normal 9 to 5 career.
We see (virtually now) our colleagues daily at work. We laughed and smile and work as a team but deep down inside, some of us do not have any idea what they are facing with internally. Some African American employees have children and are afraid to have them to hang out with their friends, emphasize to their children daily the importance of dressing “appropriately”, being well groomed, and surrounding themselves with white friends just to “fit” in, if possible. We might have employees who are just concerned about their family members, young or old, man or woman, knowing they might be killed if they do one thing wrong in the eyes of the police.
To put it simply, Your employees may not be okay. For example, I remember barely concentrating at work and continuous headaches thinking about racial injustices. My manager gave me the space to work as I chose, cancel meetings if I needed to, referred me to Employee Assistance Program (EAP), or take more time off regardless of business needs. This made all the difference to me, my work and my health. Most importantly, I gained respect for my manager. He understood what I needed — even though he could not understand what I was going through.
If you are a people manager — or serve in a senior leadership position — and work alongside African Americans and you don’t know what to say or do, here are 7 tips to assist your employees now and in the future:
● Give employees more time to their work. Move away from the traditional 8 hour work day. Focus on the work being completed in realistic deadlines instead of worrying if the employee is working during normal business hours. Employees need time to digest all they see and hear constantly.
● Ask how you can help. Not just with words but actions. Having a quick 1:1 outside of your standard meetings might help build the trust and conversation you are trying to gain from your employee. Can you make a donation or volunteer to one of their charities they are most passionate about? Are their support groups you can be more involved in to learn more about race relations.
● Be a sponsor not just a mentor. A mentor provides information about the skills an employee can brush up on. A sponsor advocates for the employee and helping to seek job opportunities that they may not be able to obtain on their own.
● Keep having conversations. The more conversations the better. Your employees may not be okay. Showing up for work positively and productively while facing racial injustices in the world is challenging. Let your employees be free to express themselves.
● Have empathy. You are your best when you genuinely care for the sake of others. Employees do not want to feel as if they cannot be transparent. If do not know what to say, be honest with your employee and just say that you can’t understand or imagine what they are dealing with. But you are more than willing to listen.
● Be observant. Pay attention to your employee if they are starting to be absent from work more than usual. Maybe something is causing absenteeism other than taking a normal mental health day.
● Put an end to having African American employees being the one stop portal for every question related to killings, police brutality, and how to solve systemic racism within the company. When managers, mid or high level, ask this of employees it can lead to burnout. It might be best to ask if they are willing to volunteer for business resources groups or if they know anyone who is interested in joining the organization as a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer or Consultant.
