Umeh, Chidozie, Cornelius, Nelarine and Wallace, James (2023) A Bourdieusian exploration of ethnic inequalities at work:the case of the Nigerian Banking Sector. Work, Employment and Society. ISSN 1469-8722
Abstract
This article draws on Pierre Bourdieu’s critical sociology to explore the socio-political processes through which social resources or capital are sought and ethnic inequalities negotiated, legitimated and enforced in a postcolonial work context. Applying Bourdieusian analysis to data from interviews and vignettes in the Nigerian banking sector, the constructs ‘ethnicised identity’ and ‘symbolic identity’ are developed to show how employees across ethnic divides and work hierarchies use symbolic ethnic markers to negotiate benefits and enforce control as a status-independent capital. Realising diversity management goals in multiethnic workplaces may, therefore, require refocusing initiatives from racial to ethnic inequalities and, consequently, from inter-group inequalities (ethnic membership) to intra-group discriminations (ethnic affiliation). This research suggests that a more nuanced, contextually sensitive perspective is necessary to address workplace inequalities linked to ethnic diversity in organisations with indigenous multiethnicities. Keywords: Bourdieu; diversity management; Ethnicised Identity; Inequality; Nigeria; Status; Symbolic Identity; Work
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © The Author(s) 2023 |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Social Sciences (York) > The York Management School |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 10 May 2023 09:50 |
Last Modified: | 08 Feb 2025 00:50 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1177/09500170231173604 |
Status: | Published online |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1177/09500170231173604 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:199061 |
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Description: A Bourdieusian Exploration of Ethnic Inequalities at Work: The Case of the Nigerian Banking Sector
Licence: CC-BY 2.5