On 1st of December, I conducted 2 ZOOM interviews with ALs from Camberwell Illustration.
For both participants I used the same prompts, and we both responded to them by drawing and talking between us.
Questions/Tasks for upcoming meetings with ALs:
Step 1: What is a good manager? (draw a shape of a person)
- Inside: What do they need to do to be good?
- Outside: What do they need to be able to be good?
Step 2: How do you experience the handling of complaints at your workplace?
- Draw a shape that symbolises the feeling
- Inside: write your experience
- Outside: Write the causes for your experience
Step 3: General questions:
- Do you currently feel safe/comfortable enough to complain and/or be an active bystander at work?
- What from your POV is needed to create a space where colleagues are empowered to look after one another. (Let’s make a mind map)
- Who is responsible for establishing this? (Continue adding to the mind map)
Consent Forms: One participant chose to be anonymous.
Examples of images drawn by me and interviewees during step 1:
Main takeaways:
Step 1 was straight forward, where clear communication seemed to have been something we could all agree on. And that a manager needs to be able to and interested in managing the bigger picture. There was also interesting point around boundaries and how as an ALs we often experience being dragged into workplace drama that does not concern us. Another big part of interview 1 was that we both felt strongly about shared values and the importance of unlearning things like white supremacy, ableism and more before even taking on a role of a manager.
With interviewee 1, one funny thing that happened was around step 2. We both drew almost the exact same shape that describes how we experience the handling of complaints and social justice in the workplace (See photos).
The other interviewee described the same prompt as feeling like it gets out in a corner and stared at but never resolved. The causes mentioned was around AL expertise not being valued or respected, policies being eroded due to lack of action from FTE staff members and a lack of lived experience (regarding questions around race and queerness).
The third and final prompt spent a lot of time with institutional things that are caused way above a programme director. Not having enough time or budget to enact positive change, and how that builds a lack of capacity and apathy to care about social justice. However, we all expressed a sense of hope. Building trust in a team is still possible.
Examples of images drawn by me and interviewees during step 2:
Key points to take on board:
- Call in with care. No one is perfect.
- Moments of friction as points of learning
- Do not spread unnecessary gossip with AL staff
- Remind each other of policies and how to uphold them
- Be a role model
This last part might feel a bit goodie two shoes, but I believe we can break these behaviours if we want. But it is unlikely to happen unless we can get more people on board and start seeing social justice as something to be proud of and not scared of.
Examples of images drawn by me and interviewees during step 3: