Making hybrid inclusive: Black workers experiences of hybrid working

The Covid-19 lockdowns presented enormous challenges for working people across the country but did open an opportunity to work from home that had been denied to many previously. Since the rise in homeworking, we have seen increasing literature on the benefits and drawbacks of home and hybrid working and the need for other types of flexible working to grow,1 but very little on the experiences of BME workers. This joint research between TUC and University of Kent attempts to plug that gap providing insight on the experiences of home and hybrid working through a diary study of 20 BME hybrid workers over the course of a month. Ahead of this University of Kent analysed Labour Force Survey data on access to flexible working and provided a literature review of existing research in the area.

Our research finds that access to and experiences of home/hybrid are inherently linked to other forms of discrimination at work, in this case workplace racism, and that well-designed hybrid working is essential to avoid exacerbating discrimination and also to promote equality.

Analysis done by University of Kent of 2022 Labour Force Survey data found that certain ethnic groups are less likely to be able to access home or hybrid working. Black (African/Caribbean/Black British), Chinese and other Asian, and to a lesser extent Pakistani and Bangladeshi workers, in particular men from these groups are least likely to be able to work from home. What is more the gap found ‘post-lockdown’ is more evident compared to pre-pandemic data in 2019. The TUC believes this is partly down to occupational and sector segregation as BME workers are overrepresented in roles where work from home 2 is not possible but also experiences of racism in the workplace compounded by flexibility stigma which means BME workers may feel less able to ask and get flexibility.3

In our diary study, participants experiences showed that stigma around home working still exists leading to negative consequences such as micromanagement and monitoring, longer working hours or feeling the need to perform digital presenteeism. In addition, both the stigma and negative consequences of it can be exacerbated for BME workers due to the additional experiences of workplace racism. The diary study revealed the following about the experiences of BME workers who can work from home.

Home working was really valued by the majority of participants because of improved work-life balance, greater ability to manage caring responsibilities, more time with loved ones, improved productivity and accessibility and the majority indicated they would not take jobs without access to this in the future. This is supported by multiple pieces of research demonstrating the benefits of home working to both workers and employers.4 The TUC believes all workers who can work from home should have access to it and that it, and other forms of flexible working, are essential to achieving equality at work.5 However, the rest of our findings show that employers need to take steps to improve the experiences of home workers and that there will always be people for whom home working does not suit. Some workers will have a preference for the working in the employer’s premises, perhaps because of lack of access to home-working set up, desire to separate work and home life, or to support their mental health.

Despite the popularity and benefits of home working, experiences of participants showed that stigma against home workers still exists,6 particularly in relation to perceived commitment to work and work ethic. Our participants felt this stigma was intensified or linked to their race, age or disability as well as their home working status. The workers who reported experiencing the least stigmatised views towards home workers all noted that this was due to home/hybrid working being normalised, promoted positively in the organisation and supported and used by their line-managers.

New forms of monitoring have been introduced due to home working, for example apps/software to log start, finish and break times and excessive messaging. Our participants felt BME colleagues were more likely to be subject to monitoring in comparison to White colleagues, showing how negative practices associated with home working could be applied more heavily to Black workers.7

The study provides support to the idea 8 that home working has potentially led to people working harder and longer, for example cases of people working late into the evening, missing breaks, working in commuting time, constantly being available or using home working to cope with increasing workloads. Participants shared that this happened due to excessive workloads, availability of phones and laptops at home, but also due to the need to prove their worth due to negative perceptions of home workers. Participants shared that this was heightened for BME workers as negative perceptions of home working exacerbated feelings of insecurity and vulnerability in the workplace caused by workplace racism. Working longer hours or acts of presenteeism could therefore be more common for BME home/hybrid workers as flexibility stigma and racial discrimination intersect.

Participants shared that working from home provided respite from the racist comments they experienced in workplaces.9 Home working will not resolve workplace racism and is not a replacement for effective anti-racism and inclusion work by employers. Instead, this highlights an important but often missing part of discussion about the benefits of office working, which is whether BME workers feel safe and included in working environments, both in workplaces and when working from home. Further, we need to consider what kind of workplace we are asking BME workers to return to and whether all workers are included in socialising and collaboration which are highlighted as key benefits of going into the workplace. Home workers will also experience workplace racism and exclusion, for example participants shared experiences of not being invited to meetings, being spoken over in online meetings, having their seniority questioned and being excluded from decision making. However, online tools had allowed BME workers to create wider networks across geographically dispersed larger organisations, connecting them to other BME workers.

Given our research found that flexibility stigma and associated downsides of hybrid working can be disproportionately felt by BME workers, it is essential that employers take action to ensure that hybrid working is implemented in inclusive ways and address workplace racism. Home working supports equality, provides benefits for employers and many workers have strong preference for it. Therefore, the solution is not to prevent home working but to have good policies, practices and cultures to support its use. Employers should focus on ways to normalise flexible working, making it the default way of working across all jobs, provide appropriate training/guidance and conduct equality monitoring. Employers must ensure that whilst flexibility is normalised, home working should still be voluntary and not forced. They must also take steps to address workplace racism, including establishing comprehensive monitoring systems and strong policies for dealing with racism at work. A full set of recommendations for employers and unions can be found at the end of the report.