The term institutional discrimination broadly refers to the systematic and unequal treatment of people within the ongoing operations of society’s institutions. Entrenched in customs, laws, and practices, these discriminatory patterns can exist in virtually any private or public entity, including schools, corporations, hospitals, financial institutions, and the government. Institutional discrimination is often “invisible” and difficult to document as it is deeply rooted in the norms and values of society. As such, institutional discrimination often appears logical to the members of society. Because it stems from widely held, but incorrect, assumptions about groups of people, institutional discrimination is unlike other forms of discrimination, in that prejudice may not be intentional on the part of the individual and may not be fueled by bigotry.
For example, many women today find themselves discriminated against in the workforce. A number of large, high-profile class action suits were consequently filed against large corporations claiming that women receive less pay for the same jobs that men hold and pointing to the widespread absence of women in managerial positions. Sometimes referred to as the “glass ceiling,” this situation is gradually improving, with more females becoming chief executive officers of Fortune 500 companies. Another manifestation of institutional discrimination against women in the corporate world lies in pay disparities. However, a May 2007 Supreme Court ruling in Ledbetter v. Goodyear made it harder for workers to sue their employers for discrimination in pay. In this case, the only woman among 16 men at the same management level was paid less over a 20-year period than any of her colleagues, including those with less seniority. The Court ruled that employees must make their complaint within 180 days of when their pay is set. Ms. Ledbetter thus learned too late in her career that she was making 40 percent less than the lowest-paid man.
Of course, institutional discrimination is not limited to gender. Court and historical documents offer numerous cases of institutional discrimination against other minority groups. Institutional racism in Black Codes and Jim Crow laws denied African Americans access to the same institutional resources that others have enjoyed. Bias against ethnic minorities has often been built into society, from the blatant job discrimination in “No Irish need apply” signs of past years to ongoing real estate discrimination steering minority clients away from mostly white housing areas. Homosexuals have experienced denial of equal rights in marital, religious, legal, and employment institutions. Senior citizens have often encountered systematic discrimination in the workplace because of the perception by employers and many in society that they are “obsolete.”
Because institutional discrimination hinges on the norms and values of society, the more these norms are evidential in society, the more they are reinforced and the harder it becomes to recognize the manifestation of institutional discrimination. In fact, it often becomes so widespread that even those engaged in such practices may be completely unaware of their existence.
Bibliography:
- Feagin, Joe R. and Douglas Lee Eckberg. 1980. “Discrimination, Motivation, Action, Effects and Context.” Annual Review of Sociology 6:1-20.
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