This Overlooked Form Of Career Discrimination Creates Mental Health Problems, Study Shows

Workplace toxicity is a monster with many heads: Injustice, abuse, discrimination, harassment, insult, and oppression. And it has many faces. In addition to gender, race, age, and sexual orientation, studies show that size discrimination is also rampant in the workplace.

TalentLMS And CultureAmp conducted a survey that builds on the “The Big Five” framework to determine toxicity, examining how often the associated behaviors occur. Key findings include:

• 42% of respondents said that managers in tech companies with toxic work cultures often lack care and respect for employees.
• 40% of employees reported that these incidents occurred frequently, while 22% said they occurred occasionally.
• 43% said discrimination and unfair treatment because of employees’ age occurs frequently.
• 42% mentioned employee race as the most frequent reason.
• 41% believe that discrimination and unfair treatment is frequently based on an employee’s gender.

Weight discrimination in the workplace

An often overlooked form of discrimination in a toxic work culture is size discrimination. in health surveyed 1,006 full-time working Americans (67% of men, 33% of women, and 33.5% of respondents with larger bodies). Research shows that employees in larger agencies report seven percent less earnings on average than other employees. Additional lessons from the study include:

• 61% of employees with larger bodies believe that their body size affects whether or not they get a promotion.
• 32% of workers with large bodies are less likely to be promoted.
• 27% of larger people say they are less likely to quit or be fired (12% lower).
• 68% of teleworkers try to cover their entire body during video calls.

The study concluded that body size issues can affect workers, whether it’s due to outright discrimination, unspoken biases, or personal insecurities. Size discrimination can increase stress and make it harder for some people to advance in their careers—especially when workers feel that body size is the deciding factor behind getting a promotion and increase their wages.

Employers can create a work culture that’s right for scale

Good talent comes in all shapes and sizes. The one-size-fits-all culture will no longer be suitable for fresh graduates starting their careers, seeking inclusion of all kinds. Research by Inside Health recommends that managers and employees recognize any biases they may have toward others based on body size, and work to redress them to improve where they are. their work. Additionally, it recommends workers focus on healthy coping strategies to manage stress and maintain a healthy body image. The study concluded that employees may not have control over their work environment, but fostering mental health makes the workplace a healthier place for everyone to thrive.

In May of this year, the New York City Council passed a bill that would ban discrimination based on a person’s weight or height in employment, housing, and access to public amenities. “No one should be discriminated against based on their height and weight,” said New York City Mayor Eric Adams. “It doesn’t matter how tall or heavy you are when you’re looking for a job, out of town or trying to rent an apartment.”

Amy Kim, president and chief revenue officer at PowertoFly, especially in terms of recruitment. “It’s important that we tackle all forms of discrimination, and weight discrimination is no exception,” Kim said. “A person’s body shape should not affect their ability to earn or maintain jobs and housing. The passage of this bill would be another step forward in the fight to eliminate discrimination and promote inclusion. Companies need to hire the best of the best, and top talent comes in all shapes and sizes.”

According to Milena Berry, CEO of PowerToFly, creating a diverse work culture is more than just hiring. Recruiting diversity does not mean having a diverse team. Inclusiveness must be maintained on a regular basis. Diverse teams require diverse support systems, and Berry believes this is where many companies fail. “There is a lot of top talent in underrepresented communities, but they need to be properly supported and nurtured within a company to continue to perform at their best,” she noted. “This means that as the talent at the beginning of a company’s career becomes more diverse, the support systems need to be more diverse. A generic, one-size-fits-all approach will not work for the next generation of workers.” Ahead of graduation season and her desire to recruit diverse talent, Milena shares three best practices for supporting diverse top talent:

1. “The career path is clear. Underrepresented talents are less likely to understand their promotions. Clarifying career path options eliminates a lot of questions and frustrations.
2. Mentoring, Redefining. Traditional mentors are powerful, but reverse Mentors, when the tide turns and new talent comes in to answer questions and advise more experienced workers, can also have a big impact.
3. Reflection time champion. This seems to facilitate the connection between employees with similar experiences as well as an opportunity for people to talk and share their experiences with others do not have the same background.”

I spoke with Dimitris Tsingos, Co-Founder and President of Epignosis, the parent company of TalentLMS. He cites four actions business leaders can take to create an unbiased company.

1. Set clear policies. The first and foremost action that employers should take is to establish clear and comprehensive policies and guidelines on discrimination, harassment and favoritism in the workplace. And not just for compliance purposes. These policies should be regularly updated and disseminated to all employees. Programs and training focus on raising awareness, promoting respect, and informing employees about their rights and how to report and address issues of discrimination and prejudice The unconscious will ensure that everyone is linked together.
2. Prioritize diversity in hiring. It is equally important to prioritize diversity and inclusion in the hiring and hiring process. Employers should actively seek to create a diverse workforce that represents different backgrounds, perspectives and experiences. And also take into account diversity and inclusion in career advancement and development opportunities. It is not possible to achieve an inclusive workplace where employees feel they are treated fairly if leadership and management positions are dominated by a particular gender or race.
3. Create open communication. In general, employers should create a culture of open communication where employees feel comfortable raising concerns and reporting incidents of discrimination or unfair treatment without fear of retaliation. To achieve this, management and leadership must take such reports seriously, investigate them thoroughly, and take appropriate actions to address problems and prevent them from recurring.
4. Practice authentic care. Last but not least, there is no better guideline than being genuinely concerned about the well-being of your employees in every way. They will acknowledge, respect and reward it.