Clocking Out: Coping with Office Microaggressions

by Laisha Martinez Navarro

A colleague praises your hard work. She has been training you for your new position. She explains how cases work and how to file them away. It’s not hard, but she likes to overexplain so there are no misunderstandings. She begins small talk and asks about the school you went to and about your marital status. 

You answer each question like you always do—politely and with a smile. She points out a word you pronounced correctly and praises you for it. You keep smiling. You’re not sure if she expected you to mispronounce the word or if you’re supposed to thank her. Instead, you change the topic. 

She goes on to ask about your upbringing—semi-personal questions. You answer them truthfully—smiling. You tell her about the fun times spent at amusement parks and family vacations at the beach. You share about school subjects that troubled you and how you spent the summer with a tutor. There’s shock in her pale complexion: her mouth opens to comment. She says she’s happy you lived a good childhood. You ask yourself if you weren’t supposed to.

She’s confused about how your parents could afford tutoring. “What do they pay migrant workers nowadays?” She couldn’t do that for her kids. 

You smile politely and ignore her words, trying instead to focus on the work she gave you. There’s no use in getting upset: maybe she didn’t mean it like that. You make excuses for her, for him, for them. 

The colleague walks away and leaves you sitting under fluorescent lighting that shines a light on your assimilation. How do you break it to her that your parents were not migrant workers? Do you need to explain? 

You return to focus on your work. You organize each case, file them away perfectly, then you call her back for approval before you move forward with the next task. 

She offers a nod with a smile, and you move on. The day progresses, and time moves on too. At a quarter to six, you begin to disconnect from the office. You decide to take a breath and head to the break room only to find her there in the middle of a conversation. 

Before you can be seen, and without warning, you overhear something that stops you in your tracks. She is praising you to her boss, explaining how great you are at your work. You smile as you walk in. 

Your boss thanks you for doing the bare minimum and walks off. You turn to face her, wondering if you should thank her. Without skipping a beat she proudly states how great it is that you aren’t like the rest of them. She boasts about how great your English is, and how precise your pronunciation is. How you handle yourself gracefully. 

What did she just say? You ask yourself even though you heard every word. You do not say anything: you stand and smile. You make another excuse—the last excuse. 

You won’t do this again. You clock out for the day and for good. The clock tells you the working day is over, along with the excuses you make for them—for you. It’s over. Tomorrow is brand new and so are you.

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Laisha recently graduated from California State University, Northridge with a Bachelor's degree in English Creative Writing. Passionate about storytelling and justice, she plans to attend law school to study immigration law. As a proud member of the Latinx community, she is committed to becoming a written advocate for immigrant voices and to using both law and literature as tools for empowerment and change.