by Olivia Eaton
Finding a community is an underappreciated yet crucial aspect in successfully entering and being part of the workplace. While it may seem intimidating or confusing for individuals part of minority groups to navigate corporations opportunities for community and affinity based support groups, there are some key things to look for in seeking a job that fits your needs. As a minority student that desires a supportive community that understands my needs and uplifts others, I looked to our own Swarthmore HR staff to understand what resources students should look for in their own search for inclusive employment options.
After talking with Swarthmore HR departments’ very own Lindsay Raclaw and Alison Berk, three key things emerged as what is important to investigate to understand what a cooperation values when it comes to community and intersectionality.
- Check The Corporations Employment Process
Understanding how much a cooperation values diversity all starts with their hiring process. At Swarthmore, HR approaches recruitment of new hired employees very broadly, and makes an effort to acknowledge any biases that may be present in recruiting candidates. For yourself, check what individuals your employer typically hires, do they all seem to fit into the company ‘culture’, or are they hired to build it? This will reveal the companies efforts to expand or contain the companies diversity
- Ask What Employers Educate New Hired Staff On?
Most new employed candidates go through an onboarding process to become
knowledgeable of expectations for staff. At Swarthmore, new HR employees do various sexual assault and diversity trainings. While this is fairly common across all employers, at Swarthmore it is of the utmost importance that, as Lidsay Rawclaw expresses, employers understand that Inclusivity efforts are not just training, “but rather a forefront of workplace culture”. Ask your employer what the onboarding process may look like, what training is available, and how the cooperation integrates the information learned at the training into the every day.
- Explore Any Employee Resource Groups Available
Many corporations will have Employee Resource Groups, or ERGs, that are made for or by minority employees as free spaces to express concerns, uplift and educate others on their experiences, and contribute to promoting supportive working environments. At Swarthmore, ERG’s started off small and have since expanded to include about 9 groups, including groups for Jewish employees, employees with disabilities, rural employees, trans/non binary employees, employees who are men of color, employees who are women of color, etc. While your place of employment may have ERGs’, Alison Berk urges students to explore how connected ERGs are to work itself, “are they just spaces to vent or established in an effort to create sustainable change?”. Are the ERGs so far removed from higher ups of the company that your voice may never be heard? These are important topics to explore to best know if your needs would be met at a given workplace.
By using Swarthmore’s own amazing resources and motivations as an example, we as students are able to understand what goes into fostering a successful community that values diversity beyond just using it as a label. Lindsey Raclaw expresses that the “Office of DEI here at Swat has been set up really to shift the culture of Swarthmore – changing policies, setting the tone we hope for”. It is imperative as minority students who desire to enter the workforce to seek places that uphold inclusivity efforts and actively work toward a more unique yet collaborative culture.
