WILLIAM GUMEDE: This is how to deal with workplace accusations of racism

Many corporates, public institutions and organisations mishandle reports of incidents of racism, which can cause major divisions and long-term reputational harm. 

Given SA’s history of institutionalised racism, accusations of racism can be damning to an organisation’s reputation. Worse, many opportunistic populist politicians, political parties and groups latch onto any public allegations of racism to portray themselves as defenders of “poor” blacks against “white racist” organisations, and to take down institutions perceived to be “white”.

Accusations of racism can therefore have a devastating effect on an organisation’s reputation, brand and shareholder value, chasing away customers and partners and increasing the costs of lending, doing business and reducing market value.

About 70% of the market value of companies is in the form of intangible assets such as reputation, identity and brand equity. Poorly handled accusations of racism can therefore be potentially disastrous for organisations.

Complaints of racism must be handled with compassion for both the apparent victim and the alleged perpetrator, as they can destroy both individuals’ lives, careers and health. This is even more critical when children are involved. The responsible approach is to provide support to both the victim and the accused — either through the organisation’s internal support structures or securing outside help.

Sadly, there are incidents where some black complainants use racism as a get-out-of jail card after wrongdoing. On the other hand, for some white South Africans, racism is so ingrained that they do not see racist behaviour for what it is.   

Nevertheless, once a complaint is received, an organisation must tackle this promptly. Get clarity from the complainant — if it is not an anonymous complainant — about the issues that are raised to lay the groundwork for a full investigation.

Not surprisingly, many organisations are often immediately defensive, bunkering down and rejecting that any racism exists. This is certainly the wrong response, as it can fuel a public backlash. This also victimises the person who reported the racism incident, assuming it was an authentic incident.

Some organisations, as a first response, wrongly publicly dismiss allegations of racism as a misunderstanding or as well-meaning joke gone bad. The best immediate response is to be open. This means first acknowledge the allegation has been made — rather than dismissing it, or worse, ignoring it.

There must be alignment between the communications, messaging and statements the organisation sends out to the public, and those circulated within the organisation. Social media is now increasingly the window into organisations, more than media statements and company websites. This means the messaging on social media — and responses to queries from the public, stakeholders and partners — must be consistent.

How to manage an incident of racism must be part of the standing crisis management plan of all organisations. A crisis management plan is a communication strategy to roll out during a negative public event affecting the organisation.   

While acknowledging the incident, it must be made clear that the organisation does not condone racism and has policies, procedures and structures in place to deal with it. It must be emphasised that the organisation values diversity and all staff are valued, no matter their race. Statements to the public and to staff must stress that they are allegations that are not yet proved, in a respectful, dignified and mature manner.

Many organisations immediately take the legal route and are highly formalistic and procedural, which is not always the best strategy. A more compassionate strategy would be to seek non-legal solutions such as outside mediation. Bringing in an outsider may minimise concerns of potential bias, particularly if the report has split the organisations in two, which often happens.

Nevertheless, after an allegation of racism event, it would be useful for an organisation to conduct an organisational culture health check. In general, organisations must make reporting racism incidents safe, easy and protected. It is critical that organisations ensure their anti-racism policies are relevant, easily accessible and are known and signed off by staff. It must be clearly spelt out what constitutes racism, and the disciplinary action that will be taken if anyone is found guilty of it. 

Organisations must provide racism awareness education to their staff, and attendance must be compulsory. Given the emotive nature of the issue, ignorance is not an option. Every member of staff should know what behavioural norms are expected from them.   

It is critical for organisations in SA, with the country’s history of racial discrimination and the sensitivities and political explosiveness of race, that organisational managers are trained in how to effectively manage reporting of racism incidents, and the procedures to follow. The objective of sensitising staff about racism is to prevent such behaviour in the workplace.

Organisations must foster an environment where employees feel psychologically safe — not to be discriminated against and to raise concerns without fearing repercussions, and that they have a sense of belonging.

In larger organisations it will also be useful for organisations to have standing structures in place to manage racism incidents. For example, organisations could set up dedicated, inclusive forums, in addition to human resources, to be the first responders to deal with race incidents.

Following an explosive racism incident it is important that the organisation evaluate its incident response and get honest feedback about what it can do better and what organisational cultural changes are needed. Such an evaluation must involve quality companywide conversations.

Apologising to the public, stakeholders and employees, if there are grounds to do so, is important. Ultimately, both victims and accusers must feel they are treated with dignity, fairness and compassion.

• Gumede, an associate professor at the Wits University School of Governance, is founder of the Democracy Works Foundation and author of ‘Restless Nation: Making Sense of Troubled Times’.