Integrating members of the Ethiopian community at work: a new study reveals that many employers and employees believe that the professional skills of Israeli men and women of Ethiopian origin are mediocre, a perception that may block their integration in certain professions.
The research was carried out by the "Accord Center - Social Psychology for Social Change" from the Hebrew University, for the "Olim Ha'im" association, which works to integrate Ethiopian academics into the employment market.
The study examined attitudes in the Israeli employment market towards Israeli men and women of Ethiopian origin.
The results of the research were presented at a conference held yesterday on the topic "The world of work in a changing reality".
According to the data, 68% think and believe that the customers of their organization would be happy to receive service from Israelis and Israeli women of Ethiopian origin, and 69% state and declare that the color or origin of Israelis and Israeli women of Ethiopian origin does not affect them.
Another evidence of the gap between the declaration of the desire to work with Ethiopians and hidden biases arises in the question about service preferences.
When the respondents were asked about the preference of their customers, 30% on average believed that the latter would largely prefer to receive service from non-Ethiopian employees.
The salary of non-academic Ethiopian women in the private sector does not exceed 73% of the salary of non-Ethiopian Jewish non-academic workers, while the salary of Ethiopian academic women in the private sector does not exceed 60% of the salary of non-Ethiopian Jewish academic workers.
Contrary to the apparent color blindness, which the respondents state, many of them perceive Israeli men and women of Ethiopian descent as having a medium level of professional abilities, such as managerial ability and analytical thinking.
The biases towards Israelis of Ethiopian origin are also evident in their stereotypical perception as hardworking and friendly, and less as rational and self-confident.
It is interesting to note that women of Ethiopian origin are seen as having higher professional abilities than men of Ethiopian origin.
Gent Desa, CEO of the Olim Together Association: "These data show that on the one hand women and men workers perceive themselves as 'color blind', on the other hand, the findings indicate biased perceptions regarding their qualities and skills."
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