Findings

We needed to start by listening. The two discovery discussion sessions helped us gather insight into the challenges and barriers we must tackle to support museum professionals of colour.

The discussions highlighted the multifaceted challenges faced by professionals of colour within the sector, emphasising the need for systemic changes to address racism, workload distribution, financial stability, cultural literacy and emotional support.

Outlined below is an overarching summary of those discussions, grouped under the following headings:

• Systemic racism and lack of representation
• Structural and institutional barriers
• Organisational support and individual wellbeing

Systemic racism and lack of representation

• A significant number of professionals of colour who attended the discovery discussions said that that they feel pressure to change their behaviour to fit in. They highlighted feeling isolated, excluded, anxious, uncomfortable and frustrated.
• There was consensus amongst participants that professionals of colour are continuously relied upon to answer questions about systemic issues. However, when discussing racism, there is growing anxiety that issues are being personalised instead of seen as systemic.
• Participants reported added burdens, with many being asked to do additional work related to diversity and inclusion (D&I), co-opted on to committees, or working as champions without proper recognition about the sensitivity and triggering nature of the work, or compensation for the additional time spent engaging in these activities.
• Many participants reported working in predominantly white organisations, often being the only professional of colour in meetings or steering groups.
• Some participants reported experiencing microaggressions, feeling like interpreters when addressing cultural literacy and competency, and experiencing isolation in predominantly white settings. Often they felt recognised solely for personal lived experience rather than professional expertise, and were tasked with extra responsibilities related to diversity and inclusion efforts without adequate recognition or compensation.
• Participants reported cultural misunderstandings and lack of cultural literacy affecting interpersonal interactions. For example, not being able to say no or negotiate workload when feeling that too much was being asked of them. In many cultures, people don’t challenge seniors or authority.
• Many participants recognised the good intentions of some initiatives around race and racism; however, they couldn’t help but feel that these initiatives were superficial and did not address deeper systemic issues.

The participants identified a range of ways in which organisations and the sector could improve experiences of work:

• Establish benchmark targets for diversity and inclusion within the sector and standardise pay rates to ensure fair compensation for all workers.
• Facilitate more people of colour in leadership roles to actively make a difference and call out issues, fostering a culture of accountability and support.
• Increase understanding about the financial challenges freelancers face by benchmarking pay rates for freelancers, ensuring timely payments, and providing compensation for travel, meetings and visits.
• Increase diversity in the heritage sector. Focusing on increasing the number of people of colour and individuals from diverse backgrounds in the sector.
• Run more discovery discussion sessions to ensure better representation across the sector and demonstrate commitment to ongoing conversations and learning about factors that impact diverse communities.
• Open the sector to a younger generation by creating initiatives that expose younger generations to curatorial careers and the heritage sector.

Structural and institutional barriers

• There was general agreement amongst participants regarding concerns over funding cuts and financial constraintsacross the sector, resulting in volatile environments, increased workload, lack of resources and support and low morale.
• Many participants explained that hierarchical structures cause delays in getting projects underway, with delays in recruitment leading to fewer people doing more and a lack of immediate support for all concerned.
• Participants found that job descriptions were not meeting commitments made in funding bids, commissioners are setting unrealistic expectations about what needs to be achieved with less funding, and management agree despite the consequences for team members.
• Participants felt that there was a lack of consideration and/or people were not upholding their commitments to accessibility requirements and inclusion needs.

The participants also identified a range of factors that could improve experiences of work:

• Support and funding for paid roles within initiatives such as Museum Detox, ensuring activities are spread throughout the country. Participants reported that these peer networks are run by volunteers and may only be available in some areas of the country where there is a larger population of Black, Asian and other Minority Ethnic communities, leaving rural areas with less or no support for professionals of colour living and working there.
• Ensure people running networks and peer support groups are compensated for their time.
• There is a need to measure the impact of wellbeing networks and initiatives to ensure their effectiveness.
• Board members and senior leaders should work alongside D&I, human resources and wellbeing leads, sponsoring and visibly supporting initiatives, and should be held accountable for progress.
• Leaders must attend wellbeing training to better support their teams. They should lead by example and demonstrate understanding, empathy and compassion.

Organisational support and individual wellbeing

• Participants reported often feeling a lack of empathy and understanding from colleagues, especially in predominantly white organisations. In particular, they feel they need to refrain from raising concerns for fear of drawing attention to themselves for being the only professionals of colour.
• Many participants observed a disconnect and uncertainty between frontline staff and management resulting from unclear communication of new agendas or objectives and a lack of long-term planning.
• Participants in volunteering roles reported feeling undervalued, having to manage sensitive situations alone without adequate support from paid staff or compensation for their time and effort.
• Freelancer and volunteer participants reported the sensitive nature of being exposed to colonisation exhibitions and collections leading to being triggered or re-traumatised, especially when working in isolation and without adequate support from the organisation.
• Participants reported experiencing anxiety related to discussing racism, personalising systemic issues, and the pressure of representing one’s race or background.

The participants identified a range of ways in which organisations and the sector could improve experiences of work:

• Establish mentoring schemes pairing employees with senior staff or colleagues from different departments for guidance and support.
• Schedule wellbeing workshops and training sessions outside of lunch hours to respect employees’ personal time.
• Provide bursaries for freelancers and volunteers to attend industry events and conferences.
• Identify resources and support mechanisms specifically for smaller organisations.

Current good practice

The participants spoke about positive experiences and examples of factors which supported their wellbeing, but this was not felt to be enough or a consistent experience over time and between participants. This inconsistency was often a function of the size and culture of an organisation, or whether participants were full-time or part-time employees or freelancers.

Outlined below are some of the initiatives and behaviours in place that contributed to positive wellbeing.

• Supportive line managers make participants feel valued. They feel relatively comfortable talking about their wellbeing with their line managers, who are empathic and approachable, however they attributed this to the person and not necessarily to the culture within their organisations or teams.
• Managers who support innovative approaches and allow employees to challenge existing ways of working.
• Generous allowances and flexible working hours, for example the ability to work from home, although it was acknowledged that sometimes these allowances are used to justify heavy workloads.
• Opportunities for decompression sessions and meet-ups to manage stress.
• Availability of mental health first aiders and access to occupational health, human resource functions and employee assistance programmes.
• Dedicated days and activities for wellbeing, including team-building events, guest speakers and facilitated discussions.
• Peer-led support groups and networks such as Museum Detox, providing spaces for sharing experiences and mutual support, although these are often volunteer-run and regionally imbalanced.
• Diversity, equality and inclusion networks that offer events and opportunities to share experiences, creating a sense of belonging.
• Peer-led wellbeing channels for specific issues, such as menopause, though often these operate without compensation for those who run them.
• Supportive emails and direct support from allies within the organisation.
• Wellbeing training offered by organisations or associations focused on wellbeing.
• Learning from other organisations to share best practice and learning from initiatives, such as National Trust awareness sessions and decompression sessions.