Exploring social mobility experiences of black Africans in middle-class occupations

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the social mobility experiences of black Africans in middle-class occupations. In post-apartheid South Africa, the persistent question is why black Africans continue to be a minority in middle-class occupations when overt racial barriers have been removed. Scholars indicate that explanations regarding the social mobility trajectories of black Africans tend to ignore that there are social class differences in black African communities. This study used a Bourdieusian Approach to explore the social mobility experiences of black Africans raised middle-class and black Africans raised working-class who are currently employed in middle-class occupations.

The study adopted a qualitative approach with data being collected through life history interviews and analyzed using narrative analysis. The key findings of this study are that exposure to different social class contexts and other societal hierarchies influenced the social mobility experiences of research participants in the current study. The study further found that workplaces that were dominated by black Africans had gendered hierarchies whereas workplaces dominated by white South Africans had racialised hierarchies. The hierarchies in black African-dominated organizations were mostly maintained at a personal level and gatekeepers in organizations dominated by white people mainly used HR practices to maintain hierarchies. The study further found that research participants advanced or maintained their positions in the workplace by increasing their capital, acquiring the dispositions required in a context or by moving between organizations.