Workplace Populism? Workforce Diversity and Dominant Group Reactions to Pro-Diversity Claims

Abstract

Existing research indicates that workers from historically dominant social groups (such as white workers in the United States) tend to view pro-diversity claims with indifference when it comes to choosing between employers. I argue, however, that perceptions of growing workforce diversity shifts this indifference to aversion as these claims come to be seen as undermining the group's now-at-risk status. I test these predictions using a pre-registered survey experiment on a representative sample of non-Hispanic white Americans (n=3,000). I find that information illustrating growing racial diversity in the United States labor market decreases attraction to a company that make a pro-diversity claim, but only among subjects without a bachelor's degree. I show that this information does not affect attraction to a company that makes a non-discrimination claim or makes no mention of diversity. In exploratory analysis, I present evidence that this effect is driven by newfound taste-based aversion to these firms rather than a shift in beliefs regarding unobservable firm characteristics.