The smarter you are especially in corporate the worse. They really vet you to see what your disposition is. If you’re tryi by to work manual labor as a Black person it’s about to be over.I hear a lot of this. American corporations want workers but oy certain types of workers. How many interviews does an illegal immigrant have to do?
'Why am I doing 2 interviews for a part-time position at Planet Fitness?': Job applicant calls out Planet Fitness' hiring process
'Target had me there for like 2 hours and to have 2 interviews just for me to not get the job.'www.dailydot.com
Right. They want people that think outside the box for sure.The smarter you are especially in corporate the worse. They really vet you to see what your disposition is. If you’re tryi by to work manual labor as a Black person it’s about to be over.
Well if you are Black they want you firmly in the box. They want you to be compliant and obedient.Right. They want people that think outside the box for sure.
I don't do house nigga or field nigga 💩, come correct.Well if you are Black they want you firmly in the box. They want you to be compliant and obedient.
Corporate America loves house niggas which is why academic institutions have been tuned to produce nothing but that type.I don't do house nigga or field nigga 💩, come correct.
I have no clue.I hear a lot of this. American corporations want workers but oy certain types of workers. How many interviews does an illegal immigrant have to do?
'Why am I doing 2 interviews for a part-time position at Planet Fitness?': Job applicant calls out Planet Fitness' hiring process
'Target had me there for like 2 hours and to have 2 interviews just for me to not get the job.'www.dailydot.com
They want good, happy slaves who won't shake the apple cart.Corporate America loves house niggas which is why academic institutions have been tuned to produce nothing but that type.
The more you are in the box, the more they prop you up.Well if you are Black they want you firmly in the box. They want you to be compliant and obedient.
You are exactly correct. In my experience it's such a personality interview. They know you already qualify for the position. Then it becomes a matter of "fitting in" which is code for are you going to be a friendly negro or naw.Well if you are Black they want you firmly in the box. They want you to be compliant and obedient.
And if you nudge that cart just a little bit they will go out of their way to do anything they can to get you outta there. Passive aggressiveness at its finest.They want good, happy slaves who won't shake the apple cart.
Big facts!!! Had to learn this myself when I worked for the state of Colorado.One thing I learned. NEVER admit to white co-workers, colleagues, bosses, or even state / federal entities that you made a mistake. No matter how small the error is (example: misspelling, miscalculation) and no matter whether you actually made the mistake or not. You will unfortunately have to play dumb because they will find reason and justification to punish or penalize you for telling the truth or "just because." Black people are not allowed to be real human beings or be too aspirational and demanding in environments that are micro and macro managed by whites and even non-Blacks. The sabotage and hate that they have for us are real.
I was never threatened with the words "JOB SECURITY". I wasn't all talk, just all work. Good morning, work, goodnight, out.And if you nudge that cart just a little bit they will go out of their way to do anything they can to get you outta there. Passive aggressiveness at its finest.
I think they somehow knew I'd flip that cart over by throwing someone in it, so no worries.I was never threatened with the words "JOB SECURITY". I wasn't all talk, just all work. Good morning, work, goodnight, out.
Yes it happens and severity or lack thereof depends more or less on the arena, setting, or field.I think they somehow knew I'd flip that cart over by throwing someone in it, so no worries.
Exactly they start asking you what you like to do for fun. Try to see if you have kids or a dog. Just stupid crap but we need to learn from the, and operate the same.You are exactly correct. In my experience it's such a personality interview. They know you already qualify for the position. Then it becomes a matter of "fitting in" which is code for are you going to be a friendly negro or naw.
I also work in govt. The hiring managers give the answers to the candidates they have already selected before the interview. Most hires are hook ups in govt.I personally don't know for sure.
I am a career government employee so by law every applicant is asked the same set of questions. They are then scored based on their answer.
So from that aspect they can't purposely make it harder or ask harder questions.
They can score you unfairly and I have seen that happen before. They can take a black person who gave an awesome answer and score them low and a white or other race and score them high for a poor answer.
However, It is generally a panel interview so multiple people are scoring you so it is pretty difficult for just one person to discriminate. That one person may discriminate and the others score you fairly. It would look bad if 2 interviewers scored you as a 5 on a question and one interviewer scores you as a 1 and that happens consistently through the interview. Leadership at that point would want to know a reason behind the discrepancy.
I went to an interview once and I knew I wasn't going to get it just by the interaction with the interviewers. They were all white females and at points I could tell they were barely paying attention to my answers. I knew they were going to score me just a bit lower because I was black and that's exactly what happened. They didn't score me very low because it would look inconsistent with other interviews I had. So they all scored be one or 2 points lower.
It would be difficult to argue if my answers were 1 point difference better or worse than the other candidates. I can't ever be sure if that was the why behind it or if the other candidates were just better, but I just got a bad feeling from their interactions. Probably didn't help that I had braids either. They were fresh and in very professional style but with 3 white women. As soon as I saw that I knew I didn't stand much of a chance.
I always get frustrated by this. I've been on so many interviews where I had the hunch that I was there just for compliance. There was so little interest in me and what I had to offer. I was there so they can say they had one nigga in the process.I also work in govt. The hiring managers give the answers to the candidates they have already selected before the interview. Most hires are hook ups in govt.
And the notion that everything you say can and will be used against you applies in these settings. Ive had a white female hate on me cause she found out I paid cheaper rent than her at the time. Its like the more you tell them the more they hate you. I had to get to a point where I literally said the bare minimum at a job.Exactly they start asking you what you like to do for fun. Try to see if you have kids or a dog. Just stupid crap but we need to learn from the, and operate the same.
That's the best way to handle them. Anything else always leads to our detriment. Hell i took this same approach and was told im too serious and I work too hard. Im like damn isnt that why I'm here. They want you to like them while they oppress you. Utter craziness.I was never threatened with the words "JOB SECURITY". I wasn't all talk, just all work. Good morning, work, goodnight, out.
Very in depth answer. Extremely logical.I personally don't know for sure.
I am a career government employee so by law every applicant is asked the same set of questions. They are then scored based on their answer.
So from that aspect they can't purposely make it harder or ask harder questions.
They can score you unfairly and I have seen that happen before. They can take a black person who gave an awesome answer and score them low and a white or other race and score them high for a poor answer.
However, It is generally a panel interview so multiple people are scoring you so it is pretty difficult for just one person to discriminate. That one person may discriminate and the others score you fairly. It would look bad if 2 interviewers scored you as a 5 on a question and one interviewer scores you as a 1 and that happens consistently through the interview. Leadership at that point would want to know a reason behind the discrepancy.
I went to an interview once and I knew I wasn't going to get it just by the interaction with the interviewers. They were all white females and at points I could tell they were barely paying attention to my answers. I knew they were going to score me just a bit lower because I was black and that's exactly what happened. They didn't score me very low because it would look inconsistent with other interviews I had. So they all scored be one or 2 points lower.
It would be difficult to argue if my answers were 1 point difference better or worse than the other candidates. I can't ever be sure if that was the why behind it or if the other candidates were just better, but I just got a bad feeling from their interactions. Probably didn't help that I had braids either. They were fresh and in very professional style but with 3 white women. As soon as I saw that I knew I didn't stand much of a chance.
This is a detailed post. I fully expected most of what you said. Other people who have been in corporate America have mentioned some of the same things you said. It is a brutal environment and only certain ones will be allowed to participate whether fair or unfair.I was in corporate America for a hot minute. I've been in interviews and I've been part of group interviews evaluating prospective employees. White people look beyond what's on your CV to try and get a sense if you are going to be a problem on the job.
They look for any small signs. When you apply for a job in some industries and companies, they are looking for coon or non aggressive or I'm not gonna make wave vibes. Small things. Do you speak 'proper English'. Is your name LeQuan, LaDonna, etc. Or is it Michael or Cynthia.
The interview for certain jobs is similar to the interview they give at the Embassy in Nigeria, Jamaica, Kenya. Basically, 'are you going to be a problem'?
I spent a while working in a financial services company after college and was very, very fortunate on one job to have a white boss, Jewish guy, who grew up in NYC next to the projects and hung tough with the brothers on the b-ball court. He was tall, Kareem was his favorite player. He didn't observe anything jewish, ate more pork than anyone. His boss who brought him in grew up in Newark and was the only Italian family in his projects. How do I know this about them? After some time they talked about their background. I was one of 4 blacks they promoted to managers. They told me more about real corporate racism than anyone else. They knew what white boys said when we aren't in the room. All of us who were promoted had 3 things in common. We were black and grew up in the hood and combined street smarts with book smarts.
He was a tough boss but it was tough love. In private in our meetings it was like on the corner. He had that NY attitude and he was like 'f*ck that motherfucker, let me know if he gives you trouble'. Or he'd say 'watch out for so and so, he's a racist pr*ck'. Both of them knew one thing about blacks. If you ride for us, we'll ride for you. They both knew the loyalty code in the hood and my guess hired on that basis. He wouldn't have to worry about a knife in his back if he put you on. You'd be mad loyal and we were. He was too. One white girl from the accounting department who didn't understand how the disburse an investment that I needed signed off, responded it was wrong and cc:d our bosses.
My boss asked me what was up, I said it was correct, 100 percent. He put her on speaker and lit into her, made her apologize and told her and I quote "Don't f*ck with my managers with bullsh*t'.
This is not a white man praise post. As I said, I saw the racism directly but it was subtle AF. Not enough to go to HR or file a lawsuit. They ain't stupid. They make it passive aggressive AF. The white boss, confirmed shit and went deeper. First hand stuff they said. And they talked behind his back because he promoted too many non whites (he promoted a Latino as well, also hood background).
I also learned never, ever give a white girl a review, especially if its bad unless there was another white woman there. Not a man, not a white man, but I got a white woman from HR to sit in there. Becky will lie on you so fast. Even if you have documented proof she was f*cking up, she'll still go to HR and say "RCNAL was 'aggressive' in my meeting and violated my personal space" stuff you can't prove she lying.
Corporate America is a minefield. If you are in management and you are in a room with other management, the white boys will look at you as one of two ways. 90% will see you as a threat. They know how hard it is to make it as far as you did and they are smart enough to know that affirmative action gets you through the door at the initial hire but it won't get you promoted most times, so if you are in that room, you were smarter and better than every single white person you competed against. The other 10 percent and in reality its much smaller than 10% are almost always too far up the corporate ladder for you to be a threat and see the same thing the other 90 percent saw but see you as someone they can put in charge of a problem area no one can fix because you are sharp and if you fail, then so what? Just another n*gga and if you succeed they can take the credit.
I always did research on the company & details on the position I applied for, so the interviewer would know I did my homework also.I believe we do, though I will admit most of my interviews have gone pretty good for the most part. I like to think I'm energetic, smart and reliable, and I like to show that in my interviews. For the most part I do pretty good during interviews. But there was one a few years back for a job I really wanted, some office job that would have paid me a lot more. Anyway I had my interview, I thought it went great, but didn't get the job. And later found out a white dude I was working with, ended up getting the job I applied to, and this dude is not very bright, so yeah, great!
I feel like I do a pretty decent job in interviews, as I never had issues in the past. Just sucks to do a good interview and then not get the job.
Perhaps the post title should be "Navigating the Workplace as a Black American" because the answer to the question posed is obviously yes.
The experience we have anywhere else also applies here.
We are held to a different set of standards and are judged far more harshly then other people.
Nowhere is this more apparent than the interview process.
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