Emotional tax and work teams: A view from five countries
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Executive summary
This report, based on a survey of over 3,000 employees in five countries, reveals that experiences of emotional tax—specifically, being on guard to protect against bias due to race, ethnicity, and gender — are pervasive in Australia, Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States, with 61% of employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups indicating that they are on guard to bias and discrimination on their teams. With tensions related to race and ethnicity underlying many of today’s current events, organizations need to better understand and address how employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups experience their team environments and workplaces more broadly. Our data show that a team climate for psychological safety and racial and ethnic diversity on teams can mitigate employees being on guard and boost well-being, inclusion, and engagement at work — as well as team problem-solving and team cohesion. Diverse, hybrid teams are the future of work. Executives, team leaders, and individuals can take action to nurture inclusive team environments by building bridges, showing up, and holding themselves accountable for making change.
How to cite: Brassel, S., Shaffer, E., & Travis, D. J. (2022). Emotional tax and work teams: A view from five countries. Catalyst.
The costs of emotional tax
Companies count on high-performing teams to drive innovation and growth, solve business problems, and spark employee engagement. And success skyrockets when teams cultivate an inclusive environment where diversity is valued.1
Yet our data show that a majority of employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups in Australia, Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States experience emotional tax on their work teams and are on guard to protect against bias due to race, ethnicity, and gender. These experiences are costly for individuals, teams, and their organizations.
“If you look at the overall organization, and my work environment, there’s not [a sense that the diversity I bring is a] value-add. I feel more like [the message is] ‘be grateful you’re here.’”
— Denise, Black woman, United States2
A majority of employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups are on guard to bias
We examined the experience of being on guard among employees from marginalized racial or ethnic groups in Australia, Brazil, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In each of these five countries, we found that most employees report being on guard to bias on their work teams. While the root causes of the differences among countries require more study, these results show that the experience of being on guard is not unique to any single country or racial or ethnic group.
Across countries, people from marginalized racial and ethnic groups report being “on guard.”
Australia
Brazil
Canada
United Kingdom
United States
These results highlight the diversity within LGBTQ+ employees, and how gender, race or ethnicity, and sexual orientation intersect to shape experiences of being on guard. Indeed, experiences of bias and discrimination compound for employees with multiple marginalized identities,5 for whom multiple forms of oppression are “most often experienced simultaneously… [such as] racial-sexual oppression which is neither solely racial nor solely sexual.”6
As these data reveal with stark clarity, it is absolutely essential that organizations attend to their employees’ experiences with bias and discrimination through an intersectional lens.
“I face stigma and bias every day at work because I am African American and transgender. I have been at work events where a co-worker mocked [a celebrity] because of her transition… Once the co-worker found out I am transgender, they never apologized for the remarks… I am ostracized every day, and cannot wait to leave in a month. I found a more accepting place to work.”
—Daniel, African American transgender man, Canada7
Organizations must do better
Our findings show that across countries, being on guard to bias within your work team is the norm for employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups. Employees brace for insults, change the way they look, and avoid certain places or social situations to protect against potential bias or being stereotyped on their work teams.8
If employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups can’t be fully seen by their teammates—or worse, brace for bias and discrimination from them—where can they thrive at work?
Organizations can start making change by constructing teams that are more diverse and by fostering an inclusive workplace climate where people can have real conversations about the obstacles they face.
Employees — and teams — thrive when people are less on guard
Across countries, when employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups are less on guard, they are: