The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel utilized the expertise of UW–Madison’s Jerlando Jackson, for an article focused on the efforts of Milwaukee company Molson Coors to foster a more inclusive workplace after an electrician working for the company shot and killed five of his co-workers and himself last year.
Jackson is the Vilas Distinguished Professor of Higher Education and chair of the School of Education’s Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis. He also is the director and chief research scientist of Wisconsin’s Equity and Inclusion Laboratory.
Though the article states that the Milwaukee Police Department said that racism was unlikely to be the main motive of the gunman Anthony Ferrill, who was Black, in the shooting last year, reports of a racist workplace climate — including a noose placed in Ferrill’s locker five years prior — surfaced during the investigation.
The company’s leadership has acknowledged they have “more work to do,” explains the article.
Jackson said that “repeated, daily acts of racism at work” — like employees said they experienced — can wear people down.
And if employees of color see that harassment is not handled well by supervisors, Jackson explained, they might not speak up about their experiences.
“The issue is two-fold, he said: most workers face both organizational and internal barriers to success. So even if companies work to address some of the structural hurdles, employees might be struggling silently if they aren’t given a chance to be heard.”
Each person carries their burden differently, Jackson said. Many people in hostile work environments eventually quit or are fired: “Usually there’s no good end to it, for those people,” Jackson said.
“Individuals leave opportunities they spent their whole lives trying to get.”
Jackson said that to create a workplace where people feel comfortable, company leaders must set the standard for behavior.
While executives might not be able to prevent discrimination from happening, Jackson said, they “can surely make it known that it’s not welcome.”
Senior leadership needs to put up “strong guardrails” that define what is unacceptable, he said, and, “take action when they hear about it.”
Jackson said listening is a key first step, the article explains. “It’s important for leaders to hear and understand the experiences of those who have faced discrimination.”
But Jackson said companies also must examine their core values.
If the organization doesn’t truly value creating an inclusive workplace, “the values will limit possibility, and that’s where we stall, mostly, in our society,” he said.
Read the full article on the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel website, here.