New Paradigm for Parity® Study Reveals the Impact of Personal Financial Stress on Black Women in the Workplace

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Sep 04, 2024, 08:30 ET

The research offers actionable solutions for employers to support Black women's career advancement and well-being

NEW YORK, Sept. 4, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Paradigm for Parity, a nonprofit organization supporting companies around the world in achieving their commitment to gender parity in corporate leadership, today released the findings of The Invisible Weight, a first-of-its-kind study detailing the impact of personal financial stress on Black women in the workplace. This research, supported by the Black Women Impact Grant through Goldman Sachs One Billion Black Women initiative, sheds light on the systemic challenges for racial and gender parity in the workplace and offers solutions for organizations to best support their employees.

The study surveyed 4,600 Black women across the United States, revealing that financial stress significantly hinders their ability to focus at work, remain productive, and in some cases, advance in their careers.

"The findings from our Invisible Weight Report provide clear evidence that Black women feel there is a significant awareness and emotional support gap for them when it comes to personal financial stress," said Sandra Quince, current co-chair and board member of Paradigm for Parity, former CEO of the organization.

Key findings of the study include:

Financial stressors: Respondents were most concerned about the cost of living and household bills (63%), living paycheck to paycheck (48%), and credit card debt (47%).
Health impacts: Financial stress negatively impacts both mental and physical health, with 63% of respondents seeking support in maximizing health insurance benefits and over half (52%) desiring mental health counseling.
Desired support: Requested services within the workplace most commonly cited were a need for financial counseling (28%), student loan repayment assistance (20%), and workplace flexibility (17%).

"Women play so many roles: mothers, caregivers, friends, and professionals. We must address the concerns that Black women have regarding their own and their families' financial futures," said Nadine Bullock-Pottinga, CEO of Paradigm for Parity. "Though this study centers on Black women, the financial solutions we've identified offer practical and impactful solutions for anyone dealing with financial stress, regardless of background."

Paradigm for Parity will host a virtual masterclass on September 10 to detail the results of the survey and learn more about the steps individuals and companies can take to alleviate the financial stress Black women face. To register for the masterclass, please visit the Paradigm for Parity website.

This Invisible Weight survey and report were made possible through the collaboration of the following organizations that share Paradigm for Parity's commitment to understanding and mitigating the systemic issues hindering the advancement of all communities of women in the workplace, including: Equilar, One Million Black Women Initiative, TIAA. Special thank you to Tiffany Aliche, CEO, The Budgetnista, and Stacey Tisdale, CEO, Money Mind Media, for their contributions to providing sage financial advice to all communities of women in the workplace.

About Paradigm for Parity^®As a nonprofit founded by a group of women executives in 2015, the Paradigm for Parity® coalition supports its member companies around the world in achieving gender parity including racial equity in their corporate leadership within 15 years of joining the coalition. In partnership with member company executives and recognized experts, the organization develops and promotes actionable strategies that transform corporate culture, so that women of all races, cultures and backgrounds have equal power and opportunity.

About Equilar
Equilar is the leading provider of executive intelligence solutions. The company's expertise in relationship intelligence drives state-of-the-art business development and CRM applications, board and executive recruitment, and compensation and governance strategies. Equilar integrates its extensive database of executive profiles with natural language processing and machine learning AI to enable real-time relationship analytics and targeted outreach for its global clients. Equilar's commitment to excellence has made it the go-to solution for over 1,000 companies, including 75% of the Fortune 500, top PE/VC firms and leading professional services entities. Learn more at www.equilar.com.

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SOURCE Paradigm for Parity