Charles Supp

Mr. Padgett

ENGL 102

4/4/2017

Workplace Discrimination: How Discrimination Has Evolved Into the Office Commented [PA1]: I dont think things evolve into
places, right? They evolve into things, but not places.

It is the 21st Century, people of all sexualities can legally get married in every state, we

have had a black president, and nearly had a female president. One could reasonably assume that Commented [PA2]: Well, maybe naively

discrimination has all but stopped, or is at least on the decline. Sadly, this is not the case. Title

VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 provided for equal employment and forbade employers from

excluding people on the basis of race, religion, sex, or national origin; people are still being Commented [PA3]: Make sure to use quotation marks if
you are going to pull anything word for word. The citation at
the end of this sentence is good, but word-for-word stuff
discriminated against for these very reasons(Kotz). While discrimination does not occur like it needs quotations.

did in the past, it occurs just as often. In 2014 Al Sharpton said that As I often say, we have

come a long way from the days of slavery, but in 2014, discrimination and inequality still

saturate our society in modern ways. Though racism may be less blatant now in many cases, its

existence is undeniable(Discrimination). In this paper discrimination and prejudice are defined

as making a distinction in favor of or against, a person based on the group that person belongs to

and not on merit. Discrimination will be discussed in terms of sex/gender-based discrimination,

race/ethnic discrimination, and sexual orientation based discrimination and how these have

evolved to how they appear today. Although strides have been made to reduce prejudice in

society and government, discrimination still exists in the present workplace in the form of

gender, race, or orientation discrimination.

 In the United States we are lucky enough to have equal rights between men and women,

and we have more women in leadership roles in business and politics than ever. While these

progressions are important and should not be overlooked, women are not treated equal in

business. For starters, there is a pay gap between men and women in the United States is to the

point where women earn approximately 75% of mens salary where both have equal merit. This Commented [PA4]: Try to discuss this with a little more
nuance and careful attention. For example, find a source
that says this specifically or can back these numbers up.
obvious discrimination typically takes of most of the discussion around the treatment of women

in the workplace, but it the more common and more subtle forms of discrimination that often go

without being mentioned, and this can be detrimental to the advancement of American business. Commented [PA5]: In what way?

Discrimination against women outside of just pay-gap should be talked about more often not

only because discrimination is morally wrong, but because of its impact on the economy. In a

survey conducted by Working Women Magazine, typical Fortune 500 Company loses $6.7

million per year in lost production because of absenteeism resulting from sex-based

discrimination targeted at women(Florence). If you add up the $6.7 million lost for each Fortune Commented [PA6]: In what way are they losing this
money?
500 Company, you would find that about $3.35 billion is lost every year because of

discrimination alone. That money could go to new innovations or for creating new jobs, which

would in turn create a positive ripple effect in our economy. If nothing else, the impact of

discrimination of our economy should be a concern.
Commented [PA7]: I see how you are getting here, but you
are reaching quite a bit and making some assumptions
about what companies would do with lost revenue. Would
they spend it on hiring new people? Would they spend it on
the business? or just give themselves raises?
 Subtle discrimination against women is extremely common and can often be

unintentional. The National Organization for Women reports that 60-75 percent of women still

experience sexual harassment on the job, and the above chart from the EEOC shows how many Commented [PA8]: Dont forget to say that this means
before using the abbreviation.
charges of sex-based discrimination have been filed since 1997(Florence). Alice H. Eagly

explained why this degree of discrimination occurs with a compelling quote in an article

published in the European review of Social Psychology: Although research on competence

judgements has not shown a pervasive tendency to devalue womens work, it has demonstrated

prejudice against women in masculine domains[because of an] ascription to women of nice,

nurturing, communal characteristics, which people think qualify individuals for the domestic role

as well as for low-status, low-paying female dominated jobs(Eagly). Since it is unintentional Commented [PA9]: Okay, so this is a really interesting
quote, but also, it would be helpful if you summarized
Eaglys argument a bit more to explain how this conclusion
and sometimes innate to form judgements based on someones gender, more steps need to be was made.

taken by corporate leaders to identify and eliminate discrimination. Although it is a supervisors Commented [PA10]: Proof read closer.

responsibility to try to reduce discrimination, results form a national survey of 763 time
employees concluded that perceived sex-based discrimination is more prevalent among women

even more prevalent among women with male superiors, and less prevalent among women with

female superiors(Avery). This means that discrimination can trickle down the corporate ladder,

to the point where it is all but guaranteed that somewhere in the workplace a woman will

experience discrimination.

Since June 2015 people of all sexualities have been legally able to get married in the

United States, and although LGBT people have more protection under the law than ever, they Commented [PA11]: Okay, how would you (or a source)
respond to the idea that it should be up to the states to
make these kinds of decisions?
still face discrimination in the workplace. Despite this, there is still no federal law prohibiting

sexual orientation discrimination outside of the right to marry. There have been laws to protect

discrimination based on race or sex, and in 2014 President Obama amended previous executive

orders to add in protection for LGBT citizens, but these add ins are the extent of legal

protection(Workplace Fairness). While there are bills in Congress that if passed would reduce

discrimination, more need to follow.
Legal protection, while necessary, is not enough. These laws do not change how people
Commented [PA12]: Okay, what kinds of discriminations
are you talking about? Can you be more specific? Can you,
perhaps, highlight an instance (say, a story in the news)
where someone was discriminated against in the
workplace?

act in the workplace, and this was shown in a model of perceived sexual-orientation

discrimination on a sample 534 gay and lesbian employees conducted by Belle Rose Ragins, a

professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a published author in the Journal of

Applied Psychology. This model showed that gay employees were more likely to report

discrimination when employed in groups that were primarily heterosexual and in organizations

that lacked supportive policies(Ragins). This is the inherent problem in the American workplace

that needs to be addressed. While it is impossible and illegal to intentionally control the sexuality Commented [PA13]: What is the problem? Im not super
sure. Sure, discrimination is a problem, but this sentence
seems to be highlighting a more specific inherent problem
of employees, corporate leaders should be required to do more to limit perceived discrimination. (but I dont know what that problem is).
Commented [PA14]: But perception can be tricky to
Discrimination is associated with negative work attitudes and fewer promotions, but define, right?
organizational policies and leadership practices have the strongest impact on perceived

discrimination, which is why leaders need to reevaluate how they treat employees in the

workplace(Ragins). It is hard to do a lot all at once, but starting small with fair treatment from

superiors is an important step in reducing workplace discrimination.

Implicit bias is bias in judgement that results from subtle cognitive at a level below a Commented [PA15]: Something is off with this sentence
structure.
persons conscious awareness. Because of our innate implicit bias, it is hard to notice, and even

harder to prove racial prejudice in the workplace. The following graph shows the amount of race

based discrimination charges filed to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the

trend of how they are predicted to be reported in the future:

In 2014 EEOC received 31,073 charges alleging race based discrimination, but dismissed 71.4

percent due to lack of reasonable cause(Vega). In an article written by Tanzina Vega and Commented [PA16]: Now this is interesting. So what kind
of claim can you make from this information? Or, in what
way does this information affect your larger claim?
published on CNNMoney, it was reported that 69 percent of blacks and 57 percent of Hispanics

say discrimination is a major reason for problems facing people of their ethnicity, and 26 percent

of blacks and 15 percent of Hispanics say they were treated unfairly because of race at work in
the past 30 days(Vega). It is the prevalence of perceived discrimination and the alarming amount

of dismissed cases of alleged discrimination that need to be evaluated by both the EEOC and

employers in general.

While racial prejudice may be at an all-time low in public and in government, a survey of

24,000 workers conducted by The Guardian found that the majority of them feel that racial

bullying is on the rise in more subtle ways, and 30 percent say that they have experienced some

form of racial bullying in the workplace in the last year(Hirsch). The problem is that racial

prejudice has evolved to take shape into less obvious forms. Whereas it used to occur in blatant Commented [PA17]: Okay, this is a really interesting claim
that complicates this issue in productive ways.
segregation and unfair treatment under the law, it now comes in the form of emotional distress

and being held back from jobs and/or promotions. In a survey with CNNMoney, Tanzina Vega

also reported that resumes with black sounding names were less likely to get a response than

resumes with white sounding names, even when all else on the resume was equal. Yes this can

be considered a pretty clear0cut form of discrimination, but it is actual quite difficult to prove. Commented [PA18]: ?
Commented [PA19]: sure. So what are you saying? Can you
Another form of subtle racial bullying comes as a complete accident and side effect of connect this to a more specific thesis?

working in an office for a black person. It is the emotional pressure and distress that comes from

working in an office that is either primarily white, or with a white supervisor. Black employees

[feel] they [have] to be very careful to show feelings of conviviality and pleasantness, especially

in response to racial issues(Wingfield). These workers felt that they had to hide their true

emotions, and although you cant change the racial landscape of an office, what can and should

be addressed is the attitudes in that office.

Recently, steps have been made to reduce discrimination in all aspects of society, but

discrimination in the workplace because of gender, sexual orientation, and race still exist in more

subtle ways. This continued form of discrimination is rarely looked at by lawmakers and leaders,
and if this trend persists, it can be detrimental to the continued growth of our society and

economy as such that provides for the equal well-being of all American citizens. While it may

not be clear to everyone, discrimination exists in society so long as even one person feels they

are being discriminated, and it is this mindset that we all need to have in order to properly

address how to move forward. It is the 21st Century, people of all sexualities can legally get

married in every state, we have had a black president, and nearly had a female president.

Prejudice is at an all-time low, but it is still a problem that we all face. With increased legal

protection and across the board reform throughout the corporate and social ladders, we may one

day live in a society where discrimination has no grounds, where no one has to worry about how

they will be treated, or if they will get a job or promotion, or if they will have the same rights as

someone else based solely on their skin color, their gender, or who they choose to love. This is

the kind of world we all deserve to live in, and the one that will most benefit everyone.

Charles,

Youve done a lot of useful and compelling research here on the topic on discrimination. A lot of

the claims you make and a lot of the sources you cite are quite persuasive and you do a good job

handling a difficult subject. However, your thesis here is not really specific enough. Youve sort

of offered us a broad survey of what discrimination can look like in the workplace, covering a

gamut of workplace-discrimination situations. The problem is that Im not seeing a claim. Im

not sure how many people would disagree that discrimination occurs at work. So, this leaves me

wondering who your audience is and what is it that you are trying to persuade them of. The sort

of shotgun blast approach to the wide ranging issue takes your focus away. I like that moment

when you discuss how difficult discrimination can be to identify and that it often deals with

perception. This is an interesting problem space that you can center this discussion in.
 Remember: you need a clear, focused thesis, and every paragraph should be actively supporting

that thesis. Simply that discrimination exists at work, is not focused enough. So, in revision, you

might have to do some cutting and expanding on some of your stronger points.

Works Cited

Avery, Derek R., et al. What Are the Odds? How Demographic Similarity Affects the Prevalence of

Perceived Employment Discrimination. Journal of Applied Psychology, vol. 93, no. 2, 2008, pp.

235249., doi:10.1037/0021-9010.93.2.235. Accessed 2 Apr. 2017.

Charge Statistics (Charges Filed with EEOC) FY 1997 Through FY 2016. Charge Statistics, Equal

Employment Opportunity Commission, www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/statistics/enforcement/charges.cfm.

Accessed 6 Apr. 2017.

Discrimination Quotes. BrainyQuote, Xplore,

www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/discrimination.html. Accessed 5 Apr. 2017.

Eagly, Alice H., and Antonio Mladinic. Are People Prejudiced Against Women? Some Answers From

Research on Attitudes, Gender Stereotypes, and Judgments of Competence. European Review

of Social Psychology, vol. 5, no. 1, 1994, pp. 135., doi:10.1080/14792779543000002. Accessed

26 Mar. 2017.

Florence, Mari, and Ed Fortson. Sex at Work Attraction, Orientation, Harassment, Flirtation and

Discrimination. Los Angeles, Calif.?, Silver Lake, 2001.

Hirsch, Afua. Workplace Racism Is on the Rise. The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 10 Nov.

2015, www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/10/workplace-racism-racial-bullying-

discrimination. Accessed 25 Mar. 2017.

Kotz, Nick, and Clay Risen, Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Cambridge Guide to African American

History (2016): 60.

Ragins, Belle Rose, and John M. Cornwell. Pink Triangles: Antecedents and Consequences of

Perceived Workplace Discrimination against Gay and Lesbian Employees. Journal of Applied

Psychology, vol. 86, no. 6, 2001, pp. 12441261., doi:10.1037//0021-9010.86.6.1244. Accessed

25 Mar. 2017.

Vega, Tanzina. Working While Brown: What Discrimination Looks like Now. CNNMoney, Cable

News Network, 25 Nov. 2015, money.cnn.com/2015/11/25/news/economy/racial-discrimination-

work/index.html. Accessed 29 Mar. 2017.

Wingfield, Adia Harvey. Being Black-but Not Too Black-in the Workplace. The Atlantic, Atlantic

Media Company, 14 Oct. 2015, www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/10/being-black-

work/409990/. Accessed 24 Mar. 2017.

Workplace Fairness. Sexual Orientation Discrimination, //Www.workplacefairness.org,

www.workplacefairness.org/sexual-orientation-discrimination. Accessed 4 Apr. 2017.