Emotional tax and work teams: A view from five countries
19 min read
| Published on
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