DEI efforts are often concentrated on biases surrounding
Class can be defined by various factors, namely one's income, education, status, family and social network. While an
"Classism, as a construct, is the systematic assignment of worth based on real or perceived social class," says Lloyd. "For example, as someone who's a member of the C-suite, I am oftentimes afforded a degree of influence compared to a rank-and-file team member. Now, certainly, we need hierarchies to operate organizations, but good ideas can come from any member."
Read more:
One of the most obvious ways to identify classism in the workplace is to identify how leaders are treated versus individual contributors. Given that leaders tend to be better paid and are more likely to have a higher education, it's natural for status to be assigned to them, explains Lloyd. He defines this type of classism as "rankism": Leaders in an organization are given leeway to behave less professionally or respectfully, while junior workers are held to higher standards.
"If you ask people, 'Have you ever witnessed or heard about a senior leader behaving badly because of their tenure, title and income?' everybody raises their hands," says Lloyd. "Respect shouldn't be contingent on one's title. Respect should just be something that's afforded to everybody in a workplace community."
Classism isn't just about titles, but who gets a chance to receive those titles. Lloyd emphasizes that classism often exists side-by-side with racism and sexism, with people of color and women inherently at an economic disadvantage because of the color of their skin, gender or both. For instance, the average Black household makes $52,860, compared to white households, which make $77,250. Even that $24,000 difference can impact what opportunities a family has access to — and that's before even factoring in how racial discrimination harms those chances today and has harmed chances for social mobility for generations. For example, a Black family is more likely to struggle to access higher education and professional experiences in their preferred field and lack the mentors that would be available to people in higher income brackets with more connections.
Read more:
"If I'm interested in becoming an accountant, I may not already have an accountant in my family's extended network to be able to learn about the profession in a casual manner," says Lloyd. "When you have an [accountant] in your network, you're learning about the profession and the experience outside of evaluation and scrutiny, like applying for an internship or sitting in for an interview for the first time.
For Lloyd, DEI strategies aren't complete without recognition of how classism plays a role in who employers recruit, who they promote and who is considered deserving of respect. Lloyd first advises C-suite and people leaders to question where class bias exists in their recruitment, retention and promotion strategies.
Read more:
Action will take different forms, depending on the company, but generally, Lloyd encourages leaders to consider requirements on job posts and what talent pools they are recruiting from. This may mean hiring managers could nix the four-year-degree requirement or expand their search to community colleges and state schools. On the retention end, people leaders may also want to include mentorship programs with the purpose of uplifting junior employees of all backgrounds.
DEI is meant to make businesses stronger, by creating a workforce that can see problems from multiple perspectives and find solutions that aren't limited to one group's needs or experiences, notes Lloyd. If employers want the best talent, then they have to consider how class draws lines in the sand.
"All businesses are committed to the idea of being a meritocracy," says Lloyd. "But if we aren't testing that idea, and ensuring that regardless of class, people are able to thrive, then we are not guaranteed the meritocracy we all aspire to be."
