Bias seen as barrier to career progression by African professionals in Ireland

More than a third of African professionals working in Ireland believe their ethnicity is a barrier to career progression, a new survey by the African Professional Network of Ireland (APNI) suggests.
The organisation which has more than 3,000 members from the Afro-Irish and African diaspora community in Ireland said progress is being made in relation to employment issues but unconscious bias remains a significant problem, as do negative attitudes by some employers to hiring people who might need visas or work permits.
The survey results, published to coincide with a recruitment event hosted by LinkedIn on Thursday, suggest 36 per cent of members “feel that their ethnicity has played a negative role in shaping their career opportunities or career progression in Ireland”.
Forty three per cent felt employers do not provide enough targeted career development supports to members of ethnic minorities and 49 per cent feel unconscious bias is “the biggest barrier to reaching their career potential in Ireland”.
Eighty two per cent of respondents believe employers viewed hiring someone who requires a visa to be “a hassle”.
APNI president Edima Inyang said this could extend to a concern on the part of a company that a person would need a visa at some future date.
“They might need one in two years’ time and the person could take the job, be contributing to the business and gaining experience in the meantime but it does seem to act a deterrent,” she said.
The organisation believes many companies want to increase the diversity of their workforces and more are working to address issues like unconscious bias but reports of negative impacts remain relatively common.
“We still hear of individuals having negative experiences where people would say their ethnicity negatively impacts their experience. Sometimes this can be because managers are not fully aware of the issues around cultural difference and how these can be supported in the workplace.
“We are seeing progress, though, particularly from companies who seek to address these issues through measures like unconscious bias training.”
About 1,200 members registered to attend the organisation’s recruitment event on Thursday where 21 companies including Bank of Ireland, Medtronic and Google were represented.
“Talent is a top concern for business leaders in Ireland, particularly when the economy is effectively at full employment, said Andrew Monu, a LinkedIn senior director of marketing, “but not everyone has the same access to opportunity and in some cases great potential is being overlooked.
“While many important changes take time, like balance and diversity in leadership positions, there are clear and actionable steps that organisations can take now, such as unconscious bias training for teams or targeted internship programmes.”