BALTIMORE — According to a new study, people with strong regional accents face a wage penalty of 20% compared to those who speak with a "standard accent."
A recent survey of 3,000 job applicants conducted by writingtips.org, found that 38% say they "soften" their regional twangs in their job interviews, in an effort to make their accents more generalized, for fear of negative stereotypes.
Real Estate workers are the most likely to soften their accents the study says.
Regarding Baltimore, almost 44% of people who speak with a Baltimore accent alter how they talk when seeking new employment.
The accent is characterized by "r-dropping," where the "r" sound is minimized or dropped at the end of syllables or words.
This also includes dropping the "g" sound at the end of words.
For example, instead of saying "building," the accent would make this word sound like "buildin."
Specific vocabulary choices and phrases further differentiate the Baltimore accent.
"I've been in sales for quite some time, buildin' relationships and closin' deals. I have a natural knack for connectin' with people, and I'm confident in my ability to meet and exceed sales targets."
Given a 20% "accent wage penalty," the average Baltimore job seeker could be losing $9k per year in earnings, based on an average state salary of $48k.
To see a graphic about dialect discrimination across America, click here.
According to the study these were the top industries to soften their regional accents:
- Real Estate
- Tourism
- Public Service
- I.T.
- Engineering
- Hospitality
- Finance
- Retail
- Healthcare
- Media
- Education
- Legal
- Technology
- Energy
