Triple Jeopardy: Immigrant Women of Color in the Labor Force

Ethnic minority women: a lost voice in HRM

“…Downplaying one's cultural identity to ‘fit in’ can cause a great deal of stress as individuals try to satisfy demands from both organisations and community. This argument is supported by research arguing that ethnic minority women's perceptions of themselves as living two separate lives (Bell, 1986, 1990; Denton, 1990; Davidson, 1997) and their attempts to compartmentalise their bicultural existence (Joy Mighty, 1997) is a major factor of stress. This ‘bicultural stress’ is typified by ‘emotional and physical upheavals produced by a bicultural existence’ (Thomas and Aldefer, 1989: 135).…”

International Handbook of Career Guidance

“…Being unfamiliar with the cultural norms in general and the vocational cultural codes in particular, immigrant workers are strangers and outsiders to the mainstream labour market in the host country. Despite their high level of education and professional experiences before coming to Canada, immigrant workers often find themselves substantially disadvantaged in their effort to join the workforce and rebuild their worklife due to limited and/or lack of knowledge of the cultural norms in the mainstream society (Mighty, 1997;Wang, 2002;Westwood & Ishiyama, 1991). Among a number of complex issues involved in immigrant professionals' coping with their unfamiliarity with the host vocational cultural norms, two interrelated aspects seem particularly outstanding.…”

“…Notwithstanding the obvious and drastic progress of a multicultural Canadian society, discrimination still exists and has its impact on individuals' lives. For example, in a study of visible minority female immigrant professionals' experience, Mighty (1997) pointed out the existence of discrimination in the Canadian world of work. Despite their achieved status as educated professionals, these immigrant workers are ascribed to marginal positions in the labour force because of their minority social identity.…”

Examining the Contours of Workplace Diversity: Concepts, Contexts and Challenges

“…Thus, the mere presence of policies and laws does not always end discrimination at work. Hiring committees continue to rely on questionable stereotypes, promotion decisions that subtly discriminate against women and ethnic minorities are routinely made, and many historically disadvantaged groups continue to be ignored, dismissed or disparaged in a multitude of workplaces (Mighty, 1997;Prasad & Mills, 1997). Given these ongoing realities, maintaining a position of color blindness is arguably somewhat pointless and naive.…”