LET FREEDOM RING: DEIA & THE BLACK CAREER WOMAN

LET FREEDOM RING: DEIA & THE BLACK CAREER WOMAN

Of all forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.” Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Do you agree with Dr. King? I certainly do, which is why Black career women who see their doctor with health complaints from job stress need a health equity plan. Whether you know it or not, job stress is the number one reason employees see their doctors. From cluster headaches to a lupus diagnosis, if you are Black, unresolved job stress is probably the root cause. Some DEI leaders believe that having more diverse upper management will help prevent health inequities. Diversity helps with representation and feelings of inclusivity. However, if you are dealing with workplace discrimination, a form of chronic job stress. The only thing that matters is who is going to give you access to your workplace rights. Restated, who is going to risk their livelihood for your needs? The administration is hired to protect the corporate interest, not the human interest. Hence, the profound number of health disparities from homicide, suicide, poverty and lost minds.

When the administration tells you that their hands are tied, they are doing their hired job. For example, a client of mine was trying to get accommodation for a workplace disability. Human Resources was not much help, so she networked to find an accommodating position. A Black female Nurse Manager told my client “I don’t hire anybody with restrictions.” Then, she was interviewed by a white gay woman and a white gay male. Despite that group just winning workplace rights off the backs of Black Civil Rights, they both told her “We will not be able to move forward with your application. You understand.” They all have business decisions to make.

The top-down approach for accessing workplace rights might work for anyone else other than Black career women who are dealing with workplace discrimination. You already know all the whys.

Which is why it’s important to change how you engage with the system. Even when you are denied access to workplace rights, it’s your job to take them. If we walk away from our rights, we walk into slavery, bondage and disease. You may not like conflict but isn’t your future worth fighting for?

Let 2023, be the year you become a boldly empowered employee. Leaving workplace rights on the table because of fear is no longer an option. Today, you have the information and the support system you need to help you be successful. When you have health complaints from job stress get a health equity plan. Planning is the simplest and surest way to health equity. Together, let us put your employer on notice, in writing, and backed by a health equity authority that your health is at risk.

I am Glennae, the Cope Consultant.  I help Black career women eliminate job stress in 40 days and enjoy luxuries reserved for the wealthy. If health equity is important to you, I invite you to explore Glennae's RX for Life.

Discover how Black career women are

1. Prioritizing Physical and Psychological Safety

2. Enabling Rest

3. Normalizing and Supporting Mental Health

4. Operationalizing DEIA Policies.