What Does Marginalized Mean and Why Does it Matter?

Written By Ashley Kelly

When you try to understand the word marginalized, you’ll likely imagine the edges of lined paper, where everything important sits in the center while the rest (notes, scribbles, blank spaces) remain in the margins, pushed to the side. 

Though it’s more complex than that, this metaphor can be a handy way to understand what marginalized means when it comes to people: it refers to people and groups who are pushed away from opportunity, influence, and overall visibility. Today, being marginalized doesn’t just mean being excluded. It refers to the systemic ways individuals or communities are treated as less important, less powerful, or less worthy in a variety of areas of life: socially, economically, or politically. 

Fully comprehending the process of marginalization is a key step towards building a workplace where everyone feels respected, safe, and empowered.

 
 

What is a Marginalized Group?

Marginalized groups are communities that have historically been excluded from access, opportunity, and representation due to systemic power imbalances. This includes, but isn’t limited to:

  • Women and gender-diverse people

  • Black, Indigenous, and other people of color

  • LGBTQIA2S+ folks

  • People with disabilities and chronic illness

  • Neurodivergent individuals

  • Immigrants, refugees, and non-native English speakers

  • People from lower socioeconomic backgrounds

  • Fat and plus-size people

  • Religious minorities

  • Older workers and youth in the workforce

It’s crucial to remember that people don’t experience marginalization in just one way. Many hold intersecting identities, like being both disabled and racialized, that affect how they’re treated at work and in society.

 

What Causes Marginalization?

At its root, marginalization is caused by discrimination and bias. Unfortunately, this means that many people don’t even realize they are marginalizing others, but that doesn’t make their actions any less offensive. 

 

  • Homophobia and transphobia

  • Xenophobia

  • Classism

  • Religious discrimination

Marginalization often arises from: 

  • Racism

  • Sexism and misogyny

  • Ableism

  • Ageism

 

Of course, not all forms of discrimination are loud or obvious. 

Microaggressions, assumptions, and lack of inclusion in decision-making also contribute to an environment where certain employees feel undervalued or unseen. This can lead to a number of negative outcomes for workers, and create hostile or toxic workplace cultures. 

 

What Does Marginalization Look Like at Work?

In the workplace, marginalization can happen in daily interactions, workplace policies, or company culture. Whether intentional or not, it’s often exhibited by individuals with more power or influence; this means your boss, managers, or even senior team members. 

Some examples include: 

  • Repeated interruptions or being talked over in meetings

  • Unequal access to mentorship, promotions, or high-visibility projects

  • Comments rooted in stereotypes or bias

  • Isolation in team settings or social activities

  • Disregard for accessibility or accommodation needs

  • Being excluded from informal networks or decision-making

  • Having your ideas credited to someone else

  • Tokenizing someone for their identity

  • Ignoring lived experience or dismissing concerns about equity

 

The Mental Health Impact of Marginalization

Marginalization doesn’t just affect job performance. It can heavily affect people’s mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing. 

Workplace exclusion can lead to:

Anxiety or hypervigilance in social settings

Burnout or withdrawal

Loss of trust in colleagues or leadership

Decreased motivation and engagement

Long-term mental health concerns like depression or PTSD


At its worst, unchecked marginalization pushes talented employees out the door, and not because they’re incapable, but because their workplace has been shown to be psychologically unsafe. 

The Cost Can’t Be Ignored

When we lose talented employees due to marginalization, which can often be mitigated via initiatives and training, leaders and managers are forced to begin the hiring and onboarding process once again. This can be a process that takes 2 weeks or 2 months depending on the market and the role, and depending on that timeframe and your organization's need, this can be expensive while causing a negative impact for your people. 

Some quick facts, courtesy of Indeed: 

  1. Onboarding is Not Cheap: While it depends on the new employee’s pay and role, but onboarding tends to cost between $1,000 - $5,000.

  2. Recruiters: If your company is using recruiters to find new hires, then you’ll know that every time they assist with finding you employees they receive a percentage of the hired employee’s salary for their first year at the company. Expect this to be between 15% to 30%. 

  3. Relocation: If your new hire is required to relocate for their role, it may cost your organization between $21,300 - $25,000 depending on the percentage of moving fees you cover. 

  4. Job Training: This can be hard to predict, as every hire will take different amounts of time to become familiar with their roles. On average, this may reach up to $1,500. 

Additional costs include compensation, referral bonuses, website maintenance, equipment, and external job posting fees. 

 

Current Data on Marginalized Employees

Recent studies continue to show disparities in experience and treatment:

Ethnic and Racial Minorities

  • A 2023 study found that two thirds, or 66%, of employees from marginalized ethnic and racial groups have experienced racism during their careers. Respondents were from a number of countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. 

  • Within the same study, 48% of respondents say this took place in the form of slurs, racist jokes, and other cruel comments. 

Women in the Workplace 

  • More than 60% of Black women have been affected by racial trauma. 

  • Even though 59% of women hold bachelor’s degrees and make up 51% of the population, they only make up 48% of entry-level positions. 

  • It is estimated that it will take 48 years for women in senior leadership to reflect the U.S. population. More specifically, 22 years for white women and 48 years for women of color. 

LGBTQ+ Individuals 

People with Disabilities

These numbers reflect real, everyday barriers and experiences. 

However, they also highlight where change can be made and where it is possible, especially if leadership teams set the standard. 

Want to know more about Disabilities Awareness Training? Check out this article next.

What Can Leaders Do to Interrupt Marginalization?

📚 Educate Yourself

You don’t need to learn the private, personal stories of your employees. Rather, be proactive and learn about the histories, barriers, and achievements of marginalized communities, especially those that are represented around you. 

This can be through storytelling, informative videos, or training. 

🛑 Interrupt Harm

If you witness a biased remark, exclusion, or inappropriate behavior, you can address it. There is a very real phenomenon known as the “Bystander Effect” which, to simplify it, describes how people are less likely to help someone when others are present. For example, sometimes when someone is being bullied at school and others witness it, but do not say anything; this is often a result of feeling apathy over empathy. 

However, silence is often a form of complicity. By simply correcting someone or turning to HR or leadership, you can prevent the bystander effect and improve your workplace culture overall. 

🗣️ Create Brave Space

A Brave Space is a space where we can cultivate trust and challenge assumptions safely and in the company of others. They are judgment-free, and are areas where we can address uncomfortable conversations and, ultimately, invite others to offer their perspectives. 

By listening and learning from others with different experiences and perspectives, we grow our understanding and empathy. 

🔎 Uncover Hidden Bias

Instead of just taking an implicit bias test, reflect on patterns in your own decisions. 

This could mean asking yourself: 

✅ Who gets mentored? 

✅ Who gets interrupted? 

✅ Who is getting hired and who is getting passed over?  

✅ Whose ideas are promoted?

🔧 Adjust Policies and Practices

Regularly revisit hiring and leave policies, performance reviews, and promotion criteria and examine them (either with your leadership/executive team or an outside consultant) and ensure they don’t unintentionally exclude or cause disadvantages to marginalized employees. 

🌱 Normalize Growth

Regardless of how hard we try, mistakes happen in all aspects of our lives, from the personal to the professional. Use these moments as a learning opportunity by taking accountability and planning for the future, establish new processes as needed, and examine current practices for areas of improvement and need. 

Talk and think about your impact now and in the future, not just your intent. 

🔦 Magnify, Don’t Marginalize

Uplift the work of your employees, with special consideration for those who have been historically overlooked. You can: 

☑️ Recognizing contributions and successes 

☑️ Amplifying ideas 

☑️ Create visibility by paying special attention to how marginalized individuals are treated across your organization. 

Keep in mind that this is a balance. You don’t want to single employees out or make them the “token”. Instead, make an effort to uplift all workers across the board, putting as much effort and excitement into both represented and underrepresented individuals. 

 

Resources for Marginalized Employees

Support goes beyond good intentions. Here are some trusted resources you can share or build into your workplace culture:

 

Don’t Marginalize, Magnify


Marginalization isn’t just a social issue: it’s a workplace issue. It affects trust, retention, creativity, and wellbeing. And it doesn’t resolve itself just because no one talks about it.

Whether you’re a leader or HR, your role is to create a culture at work that centers around dignity, equity, and belonging. That means listening deeply, speaking up and openly, and taking action, especially when it’s uncomfortable. 

Let your workplace be one where no one has to escape to the margins to feel safe. 

 

FAQ: Answering Your Questions About What Marginalized Means 

  • Discrimination describes an action taken, like when someone is treated unfairly or unequally due to their identity. On the other hand, marginalization is the result of discriminatory practices that have been repeated over time and across systems. 

    Think of discrimination as the cause, and marginalization as the effect. 

  • Being marginalized at work means you’re excluded, intentionally or unintentionally, from opportunities, resources, or recognition because of your identity. It can show up as being overlooked for promotions, spoken over in meetings, or facing microaggressions. 

  • Yes. Marginalization can become so normalized in some workplaces or industries that people experiencing it may assume that “this is just how it is”. This is especially true if someone has faced exclusion throughout their whole career. That’s why listening, learning, and reflecting is so important for everyone. 

  • First, know that you are not alone and you are not imagining it. If you feel comfortable, document your experiences in detail and talk to a trusted colleague, HR contact, or manager who has shown allyship. If internal support is not available, external support such as employee advocacy groups, unions, or legal aid organizations can help. 

    You deserve to feel seen, to be supported, and to feel safe at work.

 

Want to learn more? Check out our Custom Training options today.

Ashley Kelly
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