What’s Your Zip Code Story?: Understanding and Overcoming Class Bias in the Workplace

If leaders aren’t talking about social class at work, they’re “missing a big piece of the puzzle,” warns diversity and inclusion consultant Gross in this original if unfocused guide. Gross asks both employees and leaders to reflect on their “zip code stories,” or the childhood experiences and cultural norms that reflect their class. Working-class employees can struggle to adapt to corporate culture, he writes, and to succeed, these “class migrants” must “expand [their] zip code story” by finding a mentor and building relationships with their colleagues. As for business leaders, Gross recommends creating formal mentorship programs (don’t just meet for lunch; involve mentees in meetings and calls) and encourages businesses to add class to their DEI initiatives via some standard methods (incorporating inclusion into evaluations and measuring diversity classes) as well as some original ones, like hiring from outside of the typical universities. It’s a much needed conversation starter about class in the workplace, but some sections meander, anecdotes occasionally feel shoehorned in, and some discussions—as with bias and equity—wind up feeling cursory. The idea has potential, but the execution doesn’t quite land. (May)