The racial discrimination and targeting I experienced while contracting at Sandia Laboratory Federal Credit Union is far from a single event endured by a single Black Woman.

HKS Faculty Research Working Paper Series. HKS Working Paper No. RWP23-031 (July 2024)

Intersectional Peer Effects at Work: The Effect of White Coworkers on Black Women’s Careers

“Black women are the only race-gender group whose turnover and promotion is negatively impacted by White coworkers. We explore potential causal pathways through which these peer effects may emerge: Black women who were initially assigned to Whiter teams are subsequently more likely to be labeled as low performers and report fewer billable hours, both of which are predictors of higher turnover and lower promotion for all employees. Our findings contribute to the literatures on peer effects, intersectionality, and the practice of managing race and gender inequality in organizations.” – Elizabeth Linos, Emma Bloomberg Associate Professor, Harvard Kennedy School

Workplace Erasure: A Daily SLFCU Experience.

True Story. I was required to coordinate a meeting of Technology Leaders that included the BSA Technical Director (my supervisor), CTO, VP of Information Systems, VP of Technology and all Technology Directors.

At the onset of the meeting, the new VP of Technology asked those on the call to share their experience implementing Agile methodologies.

Given I had been deemed responsible for “all things Jira/Agile” and had struggled to gain the confidence of these leaders, I was excited to share my 17 years of experience implementing the framework.

However, as I began to speak I was interrupted by my supervisor, who shared she’d managed an initiative utilizing the framework for 3 years while setting up a Digital program at her previous job. When she finished speaking, the meeting moved forward. I was not provided an opportunity to contribute to the discussion. Instead I was given the role of “scribe”; in other words, I was the notetaker.

“Play the game” she said.

When the opportunity to share my experience presented itself again, I did so, believing the insights being provided related to my experience, would provide context to the recommendations I was being asked to provide.

Both my supervisor and I privately agreed that what I was being asked to do was premature, and that Technology team members were not prepared to implement the aggressive steps being mandated by leadership. She acknowledged that the leaders requests were confusing and misdirected; adding that they were using language they didn’t understand. She also informed me that she was receiving significant “push back” from many other members of our team.

Our concerns were not shared with her direct supervisor (the VP of Information Systems). I was soon required to define a ‘Governance Process’ that neither I nor she believed was achievable. I was directed to prepare the recommendation [that my supervisor began to draft] as if it were coming directly from me.

Below is the “first pass” feedback my supervisor provided, with the knowledge of her leader who was copied.

My experience (which lends to the recommendations being made) was struck through and erased. I was fed the language my supervisor and her supervisor wanted me to draft for a process intended to be shared with other executive leaders and implemented with team members who had already expressed concerns regarding rapid changes being made.

The erasure of my voice, presence and professional input was a daily experience at SLFCU. I was never afforded the right to advocate for myself, my team or the integrity of the work products I was required to produce.

I was given tasks, that were always undefined and frequently changing, and expected to complete them without question, concern or clarity.

I was asked to bear the responsibility of recommendations I did not agree with and to put my professional reputation on the line for governance processes that were nonexistent.

Please take time to review the findings of the Elizabeth Linos and the Harvard Kennedy School contributors who have shared critical data that supports what I and so many Black Women experience in workplaces where our voice and presence are diminished.

State of Black Women in Corporate America

The work trauma Black Women experience is an organizational failure resulting from the absence of leadership accountability.

Of the 85+ SLFCU technology initiatives in progress, I was never assigned to support any of them in the role of IT Project Manager.

My SLFCU supervisor could erase my voice, work products and eventually my job because no one who with authority and the obligation to question her actions, cared to do so.

There was 0 investment in my success at SLFCU, which made the decision to fire me easy.

My daugther and I were served with eviction papers on Wednesday. Our mobile telephone service was disconnected the day before that. We were without food until a concerned friend, realizing our circumstance, sent over a late night [and MUCH APPRECIATED] Door Dash delivery.

We will be houseless soon and my daughter’s work towards 2028 Olympic GOLD, placed unfairly in uncertainty.

My supervisor candidly told me to “play the game”.

This is the state of Black Women who are rarely afforded the opportunity to “play”, let alone win “The Game” in toxic workplaces.

Hell, how can we play the game when we are not the folks executing tried and true Systemic Racism plays?

The data is real. Our experiences are R-E-A-L.

Why Work at SLFCU? #DoTheRightThing