It’s the inaccessibility for me: Why your hiring process must reflect your values.
CAM is a non-binary Black feminist abolitionist and community organizer from the south-side of Chicago. They have been fighting to shift the material conditions in Black communities throughout DC and Chicago. CAM is independently studying Black leftism, anarchy, and communism.
As a Black non-binary organizer, at each job interview, I would introduce my pronouns and fear being misgendered. I'd wonder if some of the many white faces that greeted me during interviews practiced the same harmful behaviors that I had already witnessed in countless progressive movement spaces. After nine months of job searching, it's clear to me that so many hiring practices that social justice organizations use don't match their values or their work, and as a result, cause them to miss out on the very candidates they are allegedly recruiting: "diverse" hires.
I was recruited for many interviews that went on for weeks, through processes that lacked both transparency and inclusivity. One of the first issues that stood out to me was the high level of labor required to proceed in the interview process. More than 80% of the roles that I interviewed for required interviewees to complete a writing prompt. These requirements ranged from 48 hour turnaround times to assignments that took longer than 7 hours, almost a full day's work. These exercises felt very inaccessible to folks with non-traditional learning styles and various disabilities, including those with ADHD, auditory or reading processing disabilities, and those with mental health issues. I always worried that if I asked for specific support (including extended time on interview exercises), I wouldn't move forward in the interview process. I also worried about what potential employers might do with the pages of strategy that I presented and submitted as a part of the interview process. I only remember one organization clearly stating that they would not use my intellectual property in the event that I did not get the job offer.
Another issue was the amount of time I waited to hear back for a potential employer, which meant I would have to go longer without consistent income. I made it to the final interview process at over five organizations before I received an offer. Employers would always assure me that they would get back to me with a job decision within a week or so on average. But I often found that many would not update me that they needed more time, or had other final candidates, leading to wait times of four weeks or more. When employers have moved forward with other candidates, hiring teams should update interviewed candidates in a timely manner so that the candidates can focus their energy on other opportunities.
After a rejection, I asked for feedback on my application or interviews but received nothing. I understand that some organizations may not be able to or willing to give feedback, but it would be helpful if they would state that plainly. The consistent silence made me wonder if their interviewing processes were completely subjective instead of relying on more ethical and effective ways of scoring candidates.
Some organizations that pride themselves on their racial justice work would greet me in interviews with all-white or predominantly white leadership staff. The interview process is already frustrating enough, but it adds insult to injury to sit on a Zoom call as a Black person with a mostly white staff questioning me about racial justice. All of the social justice organizations that I interviewed for lacked any semblance of racial diversity in their staff. Of course, this is common in non-profits, but to see it so blatantly in interviews and watch it go unacknowledged spoke volumes about the reality at that organization. I remember in one interview, a team of white women asked me what networks I had outside of Black queer folks, which shocked me. Would a straight white candidate be asked what networks they have outside of straight white people?
Black women are leading strikes currently all around the nation for fair wages. The need for secrecy around salary ranges is oppressive and inaccessible. Interview processes should take “conflict of interest” clauses very seriously; using hiring processes based on your network is a practice of white supremacy and creates a glass door effect for organizations, rendering them inaccessible to marginalized communities.
Every organization should have a standard, transparent interview process, efficient follow-up response time with open and clear communication, feedback for candidates who were not offered or declined the role, and equitable wages advertised in all job descriptions. Though organizations may claim that they engage in progressive advocacy while centering those most marginalized in their work, they show their actual politics throughout their hiring processes. These gaps in social justice-based organizations throughout interview processes are too wide for comfort and to be ignored. I urge organizations to reflect, reassess, and recommit to their missions and values by holding fair and equitable hiring processes.