Being an ally can often mean two very different things depending on whether you’re a man or a woman. One researcher from the U.S has revealed that men can sometimes label themselves an ally when they’re actually not doing very much to help tackle workplace sexism at all.
Meg A. Warren, a researcher on allyship, inclusion and well-being at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington, said that despite her findings showing that most people declared themselves willing allies for underrepresented and marginalised people in their workplaces, these declarations have not necessarily transformed into concrete actions.
In fact, women have reported some skepticism about men and their merely expressed interest in being allies. Warren’s latest research revealed this skepticism has merit.
“In many cases, men believe they are better allies than their female co-workers do,” she wrote in an article for Scientific American. She decided to begin her research with a single question: “What if I directly asked men about whether they think they are allies to women in their workplaces?”
Warren interviewed more than one hundred female employees working in science, technology, engineering and math, asking them to select a male colleague they worked with closely and identifying whether this man is an ally.
They were then asked to recount an occasion where the man they choose supported them or stood up for them at work.
The man was then questioned and asked to rate themselves as allies (without being told what their female colleagues had said).
The man was also asked to describe an instance when they believed themselves to be supporting that female colleague.
In one case, the man recounted an incident when he was in a meeting with his female colleague, and another male colleague. The male colleague talked over the woman, “throwing up unnecessary and irrelevant complications to derail her,” he said.
“Although I did not speak up in the meeting, I did visit her to express sympathy and support.”
Although this man saw himself as an ally, the woman did not. “He provided moral support. It was nice. Not super impactful, but nice,” the woman said.
For the man, reflecting on the situation, identifying the sexism and offering to talk to the woman about it later constituted being an ally. For the woman, this wasn’t enough.
“While speaking privately was seen as an act of collegiality, she would have likely viewed him as more of an ally had he said something during the meeting to support her,” Warren said.
“Workplace dynamics often do not favour women, and creating a culture of inclusion requires men to be allies who not only stand up for their female colleagues in visibly difficult moments, but who work day-to-day toward equality.”
Warren suggested a number of strategies to shift the focus from acknowledged inequities into concrete action, such as asking colleagues what issues they want help with, and seeing what you can do to be useful in that context.
“It is possible that what you are currently doing is ineffective or could be made more effective,” Warren said, adding that suggestions from a colleague telling you that you could be a better ally should be taken seriously.
“Without concrete action when it matters most, men’s care and interest in allyship are invisible to women,” she said.