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Report: Jewish at Work 2024 -
Researching the Impact of and Potential for Corporate Jewish Employee Resource Groups

(Rabbi Elan Babchuck, Rebecca Leeman; January 2024)

This report, “Jewish at Work 2024,” presents findings from a survey of 1,474 Jewish employees and 10 focus groups, exploring the experiences of Jews in the workplace and the role of Jewish Employee Resource Groups (ERGs). The study reveals that many Jewish employees feel unsafe or unsupported at work, with 31% feeling unsafe being “openly Jewish” and 56% not feeling supported by their employers. There is a growing demand for Jewish ERGs, with 46% of members joining after October 7, 2023, and a 709% growth in the Jewish ERG network. Despite this demand, companies often do not adequately support Jewish ERG efforts, and many ERGs do not yet meet their members’ needs. The report highlights the importance of developing Jewish ERGs using a Hierarchy of Needs framework, focusing on fostering safety, deepening communal experiences, and building organizational bridges.

Below is the executive summary of the report. For the full report, click here.


Over the last year, there has been remarkable growth in corporate-based Jewish Employee Resource Groups (ERGs), part of a broader movement underway in today’s corporate settings. ERGs have surged in popularity, particularly since 2020, with over 90% of Fortune 500 companies now having ERGs for groups considered minorities, underrepresented, or marginalized (McKinsey, 2022).

Previous research on ERGs impact on corporate outcomes, and on economic productivity, has underscored ERGs’ impact:

  • ERG members report a higher level of belonging in their organization than those who do not (85% vs. 81%), and that gap is even more significant when factors such as effective leadership and frequency of events are factored in. (Perceptyx, 2024).
  • There is a strong correlation between a company’s openness to sponsoring cultural and religious ERGs and its overall success. (Fortune 500, Fair360, 2024).
  • Innovation is more than 2x as strong in countries with high religious tolerance (low religious hostilities) as countries with low tolerance. (World Economic Forum, 2014).

Clal and JewishERGs have developed a network of over 300 Jewish ERG leaders (representing 140+ ERGs) who have expressed that the path for Jewish ERGs has not been smooth, as many have had to fight in order to receive the same opportunities that so many of their colleagues have. Given that the field of Jewish ERGs is less than a decade old, we see an opportunity ahead to support these groups and their leaders and to position the growth and stability of ERGs. By studying Jewish ERG operating models, leadership structures, program offerings, and strategic communications, we intend for this report to help catalyze the field, and yield new pathways and initiatives designed to meet the needs of ERG participants and maximize the potential impact of ERGs on individuals (both Jewishly and professionally), and on company cultures writ large.

With funding from the Charles H. Revson Foundation, One8 Foundation, UJA Federation of New York, and Combined Jewish Philanthropies, Clal undertook a study to understand the market for Jewish employee resource groups (ERGs). We sought to unpack lessons about the climate of Jews in corporate workplaces, why Jewish employees seek out ERGs, the challenges current ERGs face, and the opportunities and conditions necessary for ERGs to reach their potential and engage more members.

The study includes a survey of 1,474 Jews across a range of industries and with varied levels of ERG participation (10% leaders, 28% participants, 2% non-participants, 60% at companies without ERGs), and 10 focus groups with 58 Jewish ERG members and leaders. We have identified four key findings that highlight the value of Jewish ERGs and need for resources, support, and structure.

Finding 1: Many Jews do not feel safe or supported at work.

  • One-third of Jewish employees surveyed (31%) feel unsafe being “openly Jewish” at work.
  • More than half of respondents (56%) don’t feel supported by their employer to express their Jewish identity.
  • 13% have considered leaving their current job based on their experience as a Jew at work.
  • 37% “often” experience Jewish stereotypes or misconceptions in the workplace. This experience was even more exacerbated in the tech and non-profit sectors.
  • In the tech sector, 42% feel unsafe being “openly Jewish” at work, 20% considered leaving their job and 48% experience Jewish stereotypes in the workplace.
  • In the non-profit sector, 38% feel unsafe being “openly Jewish” at work, 25% considered leaving their job and 48% experience Jewish stereotypes in the workplace.

When it comes to Israel, many participants do not feel comfortable talking about Israel at work, despite their strong connection.

  • The vast majority of participants believe Israel should exist (91%) and feel a personal connection to Israel (84%), but far fewer feel comfortable talking about their feelings on Israel at work (37%) or the current situation in Israel at work (30%).
  • Once again, these gaps were worse in the tech and non-profit sectors.

For a further breakdown by industry see Figure 1, 2 and 3 on pages 12-14 in the report.

Finding 2: There is a growing demand for and interest in Jewish ERGs.

  • 46% of ERG members and leaders surveyed joined an ERG after October 7th, 2023.
  • From October 2023 to October 2024, there was a 709% growth in the number of groups participating in the Jewish ERG network [from 44 to 312 members in JewishERGs.com].

Interestingly, employees who are otherwise not Jewishly engaged outside of work are joining ERGs.

  • 44% of ERG participants are not involved in any Jewish organizations outside of work suggesting a Jewish ERG could be an important entry point to Jewish life.
  • For 24% of participants, their company’s ERG is their “primary place to connect with Jewish life.”

Participants joined ERGs for a wide range of reasons, primarily for celebrating being Jewish (73%) and networking with others (50%), and least of all for feeling unsafe (17%).

Demand for the following were outlined to help Jewish employees feel supported at work:

  • 58% highlighted the need for antisemitism awareness training. Although highlighted by most as a key lever for change, focus group participants noted the challenges of delivering antisemitism training.
  • They also were interested in Jewish gatherings to support each other through community support groups (44%), holiday celebrations (40%), and social events (35%).
  • Only 4% valued religious programming to feel supported at work (4%).
  • In addition to the need for antisemitism training, focus group participants expressed interest in cultural awareness training (32%) to share more of the positive aspects of being Jewish.

For a breakdown of the most important offerings for employees to feel safe at work, see Figure 5 on page 19.

Finding 3: Employees feel companies are not adequately supporting Jewish ERG efforts.

  • Only 61% of participants felt that their companies were supporting their Jewish ERG efforts.
  • This lack of support was even more pronounced in the healthcare and tech industries, where only 17% of ERG leaders in healthcare and 41% of them in tech felt supported. See Figure 7 on page 21 for the breakdown by industry.

Focus group feedback highlighted that companies are often unsupportive of Jewish ERGs as an ethno-religious minority group:

“We learned recently that were not considered a first-tier ERG; we're like a second-tier group, not getting funding. Even with all that’s going on in society, we’re not a strategic priority.” - ERG Leader, Focus Group

Finding 4: Jewish ERGs are not yet meeting their members’ needs.

Often leaders of Jewish ERGs are new and inexperienced in this role.

  • 34% of leaders started their company’s Jewish ERGs after October 7th
  • 50% of leaders have 13 months or less of experience leading their ERG.
  • Many leaders had the role assigned to them or assumed the role unintentionally.
“I sought out support from the DEI liaison and was invited to start an ERG; it was not a choice.” - ERG Leader, Survey
Leaders need considerable support to meet the gaps between the members and leaders experience of the Jewish ERG. Leaders have higher interest and satisfaction with the Jewish ERG than members. This suggests there is room for ERG leaders to serve their members’ needs better.
  • 65% of members were satisfied with their company’s Jewish ERG (compared to 83% of leaders).
  • 56% reported ‘getting what they wanted’ from their Jewish ERG participation (compared to 84% of leaders).

See Figure 8 on page 22 for a breakdown between members and leaders’ experience of the Jewish ERG.

Jewish ERGs: A powerful and important new mode of gathering with immediate opportunities for improvement.

  • With tremendous growth in the movement over the past year, Jewish ERGs hold significant opportunities for engaging Jews in their identity, helping Jews advance professionally, and advocating for Jewish equity in DEIB systems.
  • That said, Jewish ERGs have not yet reached a mature state of development across the board, and they are not yet adequately fostering feelings of safety in the workplace for their members. Their leaders, while deeply committed, have not universally adopted the kinds of adaptive leadership practices that would make the ERGs more impactful and sustainable in the long run. There remain significant gaps between the interests of leadership and those of participants. These challenges, while common across ERGs of all identities and organizations, are exacerbated by some of the unique challenges Jews face in the workplace today.
  • As Jewish ERGs grow in popularity, we recommend investing in their development using the Hierarchy of Needs framework, focusing on three levels: fostering safety, deepening communal experiences, and building organizational bridges (see figure 10 on page 25). This approach will help bridge the gap between the current state of ERGs and the field’s aspirations.

Source: Elan Babchuck, Rebecca Leeman, “Jewish@Work 2024,” jewishatwork.com, (January 2024).