It's called the "bachelor barrier" — the undergraduate degree requirement that many African American and other people of color don't meet, which keeps them from a promotion or a new job.
Now, there's a new initiative in town, dubbed OneTen, with a mission to close that opportunity gap and create family-sustaining careers for Black talent, especially those without college degrees.
Instead of a bachelor's degree credential, OneTen enlists companies to hire based on skills and aptitude. Merck's former CEO Kenneth Frazier is spearheading the OneTen organization, which he calls "a coalition of leaders" at nearly 70 companies, including IBM, JPMorganChase & Co., United Airlines, Berkshire Hathaway, GM and Airbnb, that together pledge to hire a million Black workers over the next 10 years. Hence the name: OneTen.
