Understanding and Disrupting Class Inequality in the Workplace

Abstract

If there is one thing that recent events have shown, it is that systemic inequality needs to be addressed. From a systems perspective, solving inequalities will require a diverse group of stakeholders to understand what fuels and maintains inequality—ideally informed by empirical findings. This symposium presents five empirical papers that, together, provide a framework for individuals to start to understand inequality from three different lenses—income, power, and culture—and how they can take action against inequality in the workplace. We start with resource-based differences (i.e., income); Hauser and colleagues will show how providing unconditional cash transfers can impact well-being, cognitive capacity, and physical health, and its implications in the workplace. Next, du Plessis et al. will pivot to look at how one’s structural position in the power hierarchy (i.e., power inequality) shapes a person’s trust and cooperation. Then, the last three papers will examine inequality through a cultural lens—an outcome of a cultural divide between mainstream institutions and the social groups that participate in them. Han and colleagues will demonstrate the importance of subtle environmental cues at work for the sense of belonging of individuals who come from working-class backgrounds. Fourth, Dittmann et al. will expand on the importance of cultural mismatch to show that organizational values, both espoused and enacted, are crucial to mitigating inequality and harnessing the potential of individuals who come from working-class backgrounds. Fifth, Truong and Townsend will show that people from working-class backgrounds may bring a unique set of cultural competencies that convey advantages in organizational life. Phillips will serve as the discussant and make the case for why managers and organizations should care about solving inequality. Together, this symposium presents a theoretically-driven framework to understand social class inequality, and discuss possible ways managers can mitigate its negative impact in organizations. A Randomized Controlled Trial Varying Unconditional Cash Transfer Amounts in the US Presenter: Oliver Hauser; U. of Exeter Business School Presenter: Jon Michael Jachimowicz; Harvard Business School Presenter: Julian Jamison; U. of Exeter Presenter: Ania Jaroszewicz; - Power versus Inequality: Which is the Proximate Predictor of Interpersonal Trust? Presenter: Christilene Du Plessis; Singapore Management U. Presenter: Michael Schaerer; Singapore Management U. Presenter: My Nguyen; Singapore Management U. Presenter: Trevor Foulk; U. of Maryland Perceptions of Managerial Mindset Shape First-Generation Individuals’ Sense of Belonging at Work Presenter: Inhyun Han; Bellevue U. Presenter: Catherine Owsik; U. of Virginia Presenter: Peter Belmi; U. of Virginia Presenter: Melissa C. Thomas-Hunt; Vanderbilt U. From ‘Team’ Talk to Teamwork: Espoused and Enacted Interdependent Values Benefit LowSES Employees Presenter: Andrea Dittmann; Emory U., Goizueta Business School Presenter: Nicole Stephens; Northwestern U. Presenter: Sarah S M Townsend; U. of Southern California Benefits of a Working-Class Background in Stressful Interpersonal Interactions Presenter: Mindy Truong; U. of Southern California Presenter: Sarah S M Townsend; U. of Southern California