Racial Stereotyping In The Workplace

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A famous quote once said, “We were all humans until race disconnected us, religion separated us, politics divided us and wealth classified us.” (Hurbungs). This is a strong quote with a lot of meaning behind it. Racial stereotyping is an ongoing problem that affects the lives of individuals based on their ethnicity and is one of the deepest social problems in American history that we have yet to overcome. This is an issue among people of all races in every part of the world. Racial stereotypes create misconceptions based on individual’s ethnicity and cause discrimination among all cultures. With America being a multicultural country, this is an issue that should be addressed and be put in the past. What’s at the root of racial stereotyping …show more content…

Workers are often faced with discrimination and harassment in their work environment, leaving them stuck in a difficult position. Many people suffer because they are the minority in their workplace, leaving them at the bottom of the pyramid. People of the African American ethnicity may work the same position as a person of Caucasian ethnicity but treated as though they are of lower importance. Individuals exposed to racial stereotyping can be detrimental to work performance because of the impact on the mental and physical health of the employees. Racial stereotyping can also affect people’s career outcomes. For example, a person of the Caucasian descent being chosen for a promotion over a person of African American descent simply because of the negative stereotypes associated with many African Americans today. Being biased in this way can be damaging to workplace behavior and inflict job-related stress as well as reduce productivity. Racial stereotyping, whether overt or insidious, can create an unhealthy environment for everyone in the workplace. Creating this atmosphere causes unnecessary tension among employees and can cause damage to an organization’s professional image. Protection against discrimination and prejudice is essential for employee performance, but despite the negative impacts, racial stereotyping is still very common in workplace

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