What's Ethnicity got to do with it? The Workplace Lived Experience of Ethnic Minority (IJAW) Women in the Nigerian Civil Service

This thesis examines gender and ethnic inequalities in the Nigerian civil service through the
lived experience of Ijaw women and the strategies they adopt to combat perceived
discrimination. A theoretical framework of structure, culture, agency, intersectionality, and
social identity theory underpinned this research. Hermeneutic phenomenological
methodology was adopted within which 40 in-depth semi-structures interviews were
conducted. Findings indicate that for most respondents, ethnicity is a politicised identity
while gender identity tends to be passive. Other emerging identities were revealed such as
language, age and indigeneship (having historical ties to one’s state of residence). Civil
service organisations were found to legitimise inequality regimes with respect to gender and
ethnicity. These inequality regimes are definitive of Ijaw women’s workplace lived
experience. While some participants identified as traditionalists, others adopted strategies
such as ‘Awaiting Divine Intervention’, Masking, Exiting the organisation, Assimilating,
Performing, Negotiating and Reforming the system, to combat perceived discrimination in
their organisation.