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About women of color in the workplace

Women of color—Asian, Black, Latine, Indigenous, and multiracial—experience exclusion, discrimination, and bias within the workplace. Too few women of color are represented on corporate boards, and many experience an emotional tax at work. Catalyst resources address these obstacles to make your workplace more diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

Emotional tax is pervasive

Experiences of emotional tax — being on guard to protect against bias due to race, ethnicity, and gender — are pervasive globally. Diverse, hybrid teams are the future of work. Organizations can take action to nurture inclusive team environments to boost well-being, engagement, team problem-solving, and team cohesion.

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Emotional tax impacts employee retention

  • 61%

    of employees from marginalized racial and ethnic groups are on guard to bias within their work teams.

  • 3x

    is the increase in intent to stay for employees who are not on guard to bias in their work teams.

Addressing the gender pay gap is critical

The gender pay gap for women of color is a serious obstacle to equity. To attract and retain key talent, address it with strategies like making compensation analysis business-critical, advocating, looking at fairness holistically, and helping team members understand the system.

  • Article

    Unlock equity for women of color: 5 strategies from Google

    The gender pay gap (the difference between the earnings for men and women) for women of color is a serious obstacle to racial and gender equity. In the

  • Video

    Breaking Down Barriers for Women of Color

    A conversation with Mellody Hobson, Co-CEO and President, Ariel Investments

  • Article

    The glass cliff phenomenon and women of color - Explainer

    What it means to reach the top—but only when it’s a shaky place to be.

  • Report

    Allyship and curiosity drive inclusion for people of color at work

    Catalyst research shows that allyship and curiosity help create a more inclusive, welcoming workplace for people of color.

  • Q & A

    How to get more women of color into the boardroom

    Catalyst's Meesha Rosa speaks about board readiness, sponsorship, and the ongoing work of the Catalyst Women On Board™ initiative.

  • Report

    Towards a More Equitable Future: Champions For Change

    Catalyst CEO Champions For Change companies renewed their commitment to advancing women, particularly women of color, in the workplace in 2020.

  • Article

    7 things you can do to recruit women of color

    Bias is baked into many organizations' hiring practices. Here's how to change that so you recruit and hire more black women and other women of color.

  • Report

    Sexual Harassment and Women of Color

    Women of color experience both racialized and sexualized harassment and assault, stemming from the historical context of their experiences.

  • Report

    Day-to-Day Experiences of Emotional Tax Among Women and Men of Color in the Workplace

    Learn what Emotional Tax is and how it affects both employees of color and organizations.

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