Increasing diversity in the economics profession, including racial
diversity, is an important part of the solution. Evidence suggests that
instructors’ demographics influence Black participation not only early on
in the pipeline, but at all stages in the profession, including admissions,
job market placement, hiring, and promotion decisions. As noted by John
Rice in his June 2020 article for the Atlantic, “The Difference
between First-Degree Racism and Third-Degree Racism,” it is a fallacy to
argue that there is a trade-off between increasing racial diversity and
maintaining the excellence-based “meritocracies” that have made
organizations successful. Leveling the playing field for minorities at each
step goes a long way in addressing discrimination and making organizations
more productive.
Proactively recruiting qualified minorities, who do not have the networks
to get a foothold, is critical, as is developing and supporting them as
they rise through the ranks. For instance, the American Economic
Association’s Committee on the Status of Minority Groups in the Economics
Profession runs several initiatives designed to encourage minorities to
study economics and pursue an academic career. And if the supply of diverse
candidates is lacking, then society needs to dig deeper to address where
biases begin—health services, education opportunities, or access to
housing.
As IMF staff members, we recognize that addressing biases begins at home.
For more than half a century, men from Europe and the United States made up
the majority of the IMF’s senior managerial positions. Starting in the
mid-1990s, as efforts were made to promote diversity, we began to see some
progress on improving the representation of women and staff from underrepresented regions such as
East Asia, the Middle East, and sub-Saharan Africa. Since 2003, benchmarks
have been set for gender and regional diversity. The regional benchmarks
seek to broadly align the proportion of staff from a region with the
financial contribution of the countries in the region to the IMF’s
resources as well as the use of these resources by them. These benchmarks
were not intended to address racial inequity, even if many consider them to
be imperfect proxies for race. While we have achieved steady progress
against these benchmarks, gaps remain in the shares of underrepresented
staff and their promotions to managerial positions.
The good news is that IMF management has expressed its commitment and is
taking concrete actions to further promote inclusion of diverse staff and
eliminate all forms of discrimination, including racial inequities. The IMF
will enhance training on unconscious biases and microinequities, refocus
recruitment efforts, improve the promotion process, introduce a program of
sponsors for underrepresented staff, and collect data on diversity
dimensions, including by race and ethnicity, by asking staff members to
voluntarily self-declare their identity. We look forward to all IMF member
countries adopting the same principle—that inclusion begins at home.
The Black Lives Matter movement has given a new impetus to raising
awareness, learning, and empowerment. Research suggests that more
economically inclusive organizations, cities, and societies tend to be more
resilient and more prosperous. Economists have a role to play in the action
for change to help build inclusive systems for the benefit of all—but first
we must all, individually and collectively, look within.
