Celebrating our sisters: Honouring the contributions of Black women in Black History Month 2023

Every year in October, we celebrate Black History Month (BHM) as a pivotal time to highlight the successes and contributions of the Black population, with a particular emphasis on individuals from the African Diaspora.

Irish Black History Month was first celebrated in Cork in 2010, but was initially commemorated in the United States in 1926, although under a different name and during a different month. It wasn't until 2014 that the event was recognised nationally. The movement was started by a network of groups who collaborated through the Africa Irish Development Initiative (AIDI) to organise a number of events that honoured the African-Irish community.
 

Understanding the theme

This year’s BHM theme is “Celebrating our sisters”, which spotlights the incredible achievements of women within the community, but also provides a chance for reflection on what needs to change to bring about equity for this demographic.

Sadly, racial biases in our society have led to Black women being one of the groups that face the most discrimination and systemic racism, so the organisers behind BHM are using this opportunity to “pay homage to black women who had contributions ignored, ideas appropriated, and voices silenced.”

Despite the plethora of challenges that Black women have faced, the relentless campaigning by the community and its allies is slowly starting to turn the dial. As civil rights activist Maya Angelou said in the 1970s,

However, there’s still a lot of work to be done. Here, we’ll focus on some of the challenges that the Black female community face within their careers and working lives, with the aim of inspiring the leaders of today to make way for a tomorrow where everyone can reap the rewards of boundless opportunity, regardless of gender, race, or colour.
 

Black women still face unequal career opportunities

Racism and discrimination due to ethnicity or skin colour was made illegal in the UK in 1965, and while we have come a long way since then, it’s still something the Black community face today, both overtly and in the form of micro-aggressions. When it comes to equal opportunities, Black women are the group that miss out the most. This isn’t okay.

Over in the UK, 44% of Black women do not believe they are offered the same career-advancement opportunities as their non-Black female colleagues according to Black Women in Leadership's report. The research also found that almost half believe they will be overlooked for promotion, despite being completely capable and deserving. In addition to these sobering statistics, four in ten Black women do not believe they earn the same as their non-Black female colleagues who are in the same jobs.

Most unforgivably, though, is the fact the BWIL’s study highlighted that 68% of Black women they surveyed had experienced a racial bias at work, and that 33% had actually resigned from their roles altogether due to race-related unfair treatment.
 

How to build a more equal future in the workplace and beyond

Each year, we survey thousands of employees and employers on topics around diversity, equity and inclusion, to not only better understand how minority groups are feeling within the workplace, but to be able to provide advice and recommendations to organisations on how they can do better. This year, we spoke to 500 individuals to find out what they believe needs to change in the workplace to help close the career gap.

Out of the people who participated, only 45% said they agree or strongly agree that their organisation is proactively taking action to improve career outcomes for under-represented talent. When it came to the actions they’d like to see their employers take, the following came out on top:

• assigning dedicated resources and investment to improve the career outcomes of under-represented talent.
• being transparent internally about flexible working policies and making it clear that uptake will not impact career progression.
• Committing to reviewing and improving their assessment and selection frameworks, mitigating bias, and ensuring inclusion at all stages.

If you’re interested in finding out more, get your copy of the Hays Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Report 2023 here.