The Problem With Word-Of-Mouth Referrals

I worked in an HR Department that was really into using word-of-mouth referrals to get new hires into the company. Word-of-mouth referrals were actually used more than looking within the company to hire employees or posting ads in newspapers.

The problem was that the referrals were always made by White staff and the potential new hires were always White, as well. As a result, the company was always bringing in White new hires and there was absolutely no push to add diversity to the staff. With about 150 employees at our location, less than 10 of those people were Black. And, we didn’t get close to the number 10 until a former African American employee filed a complaint of race-based retaliation and the company wanted to put on a stronger diversity show for the Office of Human Rights, who was investigating her case.

Compounding the problem of focusing on word-of-mouth referrals, my employer also didn’t post in-house notices of job vacancies. So, staff never knew when a job opportunity opened up (read: a potential promotion opportunity or career path change), unless they were told about it by a member of management. This was rare. And, in cases where this happened, White staff would be told to apply for a job opening and Black staff had no idea the opportunity existed to apply for the position. Most staff were being deprived of the opportunity to apply for any of these positions.

Behaviors such as relying on word-of-mouth referrals and not posting internal job vacancies may both be signs of an employer who engages in discrimination. According to the EEOC:

While word-of-mouth recruiting in a racially diverse workforce can be an effective way to promote diversity, the same method of recruiting in a non-diverse workforce is a barrier to equal employment opportunity if it does not create applicant pools that reflect the diversity in the qualified labor market.

If you believe your employer discriminates, these may be two areas to look at in order to show a pattern of problem behavior by your employer (selecting/evaluating new hires and promotions/in-house job openings).

Source: http://www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/race-color.html#VIA2

My Experience With Internal Job Openings

To follow-up on a recent post about some companies not posting internal job openings, so that staff can’t get first cracks at available jobs, I’d like to share one of my experiences.

I was working with a White, mid-level manager for about a year. A job opened up, which would have been a promotion for me. This job wasn't posted because my company did not list internal job openings. They would move White staff into jobs or they would hire from outside the company--usually bringing in White staff. Well, this White manager wanted me in the position because I was already doing some of the work and we got along well.

Well, HR and others got together to discuss the available jobs at the company. Afterwards, I was told that I wasn’t a fit to work in the position because the position required a medical background. For the record, it didn’t. The position was about marketing information to medical professionals, organizations, etc. and did not entail any original writing, etc. of a medical nature.

Anyway, I was told to work with this manager until someone was hired. Well, here comes Ms. Young White Chick (not her real last name). So, I had to ask, "What is your medical background?" And, she said, “Both my parents are doctors!”

Yes, her parents being M.D.s qualified as HER medical background. The White manager later told me (the same one that wanted to place me in the position):

“Well we counted that as a medical background because we assumed she’d have a familiarity with medical jargon from hearing her parents speak.”

Well, if that’s all it takes, I have a familiarity with medical jargon from watching Doogie Howser, M.D., Quincy, Emergency One, Trapper John, M.D., General Hospital, ER, Chicago Hope, St. Elsewhere, etc.

Give me a freakin’ break!

So, Ms. Medical Jargon (still not her last name), needed me to help her create handouts and conduct a major client presentation on work I was told she was expert in/was familiar with. Today, she has replaced that White manager in his mid-level job!

This employer never criticized me for not having strong skills, they just wanted something MORE—like parents that were doctors. Funny thing, this was the 2nd time I lost out on a non-posted job opportunity at this company. And, both times, I was asked to train the White staff that were hired from outside the company. But, they supposedly had MORE than I did. I was unqualified to do the work, but qualified to teach someone White how to do the work! It must be nice in White world!

Your Employer May Be Engaging in Discrimination If...

--your employer denies Black workers the same training opportunities that are provided to White staff.

At some companies, unequal training opportunities may be offered to Black workers or no training opportunities may exist at all! A lack of training in relevant areas can be used as a “legitimate” reason to overlook certain employees, when it comes to providing more challenging work, supervisory opportunities, and promotions.

While working for my former employer, I began taking on assignments in the Research & Evaluation department of our company. I was offered formal training at a local branch (Washington, DC) of a major training organization in the field. However, a Black executive approached me and said, “They send all the White people out to California. Demand to go to California. That’s where the best training is given.”

When I spoke to a Black coworker, she relayed the same story. White employees were automatically sent to California for the weeklong training session. Yet, I was told that I had to train locally. When I pressed for the California training, I heard excuses about how there might not be money in the budget. YET, all the while, a couple of White chicks were going out-of-state for the same training! I ended up getting the California training, but would have known nothing about the superior training provided in California without someone clueing me in to the facts!

I had a Black coworker ask for training directly related to her job requirements. She was told that she could use the last few thousand dollars in the budget to go to this training. HOWEVER…wait for it…

Her White supervisor, the same person that told her she could go to the training, raced to put through a training/travel voucher to go to the SAME TRAINING. Now, this White supervisor previously stated she was uninterested in this training course. But, as soon as her subordinate mentioned it, she gave her the okay, but made sure the money was unavailable for her to attend.

Why did she do this? Fear!

Her Black subordinate had a Master’s degree—the same as she did. The White supervisor had received her Master’s degree a mere 2 months before the Black employee, yet she was rated as superior enough to be this Black woman’s direct supervisor. The Black employee had an additional certification that her supervisor didn’t have—meaning the education advantage actually went to the Black subordinate. Therefore, this White supervisor was not going to let her subordinate get one more leg up on her. So, she pretended to be supportive of the training and then took the opportunity for herself. She knew damn well there was only enough money in the contract for one person to attend.

The Black employee was furious because she was told that she could use the remaining funds and those funds turned out to be depleted by the next day, when the Black employee submitted her form! This is how some Blacks are undermined in the workplace. We may be promised training that no one intends on us having, may be denied training for no valid reason or we may be offered inferior training opportunities—as I was offered.

You have to wonder why a company would intentionally provide some employees with inferior training, since that brings down the skill level of the company—as a whole. In my case, I know for a fact that race was the only difference in determining who would train at which location. One can only surmise that the point was to keep the Black workers at a lower level of expertise and knowledge compared to White staff. This would continue the unwritten policy at my company that did everything possible to ensure that White staff had an advantage over Black staff.

At this same company, some Blacks were denied training opportunities that were defined as being “premature” for them! What the hell does that mean, anyway? Training is just one way that employers may intentionally discriminate against Black staff. You have to look at what is happening at your company and decide if you are not receiving equal treatment. You should address any disparities with your supervisor and/or Human Resources!

Your Employer May Be Engaging in Discrimination If...

-- Your employer doesn’t post internal job openings or disseminate a list of job openings electronically.

Most employees are not seeking strictly lateral job opportunities. Employees look to improve their standing in the workplace. Denying an employee first crack at internal jobs is a major way to stunt their professional and financial growth opportunities.

If your employer is not making internal staff aware of in-house job opportunities, they are denying internal candidates the chance to apply for positions that could bring them new skills, increase their job level, increase their salary, etc.

When jobs are open at your company, are favored employees—always White—pre-selected for the positions? In other words, when someone resigns or retires from a job, is a White staffer selected to move into their position or is a White person hired for the job –without allowing Blacks or other so-called minorities the opportunity to apply for the position?

If that is the case, this behavior could indicate that your employer is engaging in discriminatory practices by denying Blacks and other minorities the opportunity to apply for internal jobs and to advance within the company.