Eliminating Discrimination In The Workplace

1678 Words4 Pages

As a business consultant I have been asked to suggest different methods that can possibly reduce discrimination and prejudice in the workplace. Is it possible however to make everyone get along and ignore their differences? According to the growing research on discrimination and prejudice, these are learned behaviors that with practice can be unlearned, and ultimately eliminated (Baron & Branscombe, 2012, p. 195). Discrimination is defined as the negative treatment of different groups: Prejudice, on the other hand is viewed as the negative emotions or attitudes associated with discrimination (Baron & Branscombe, 2012, p. 183). These two terms go hand in hand because they both can lead to racism; however, that is not suggesting that there is a cause-and-effect relationship between the two. Discrimination in the workplace is not limited to just one thing; in fact, it is found in many occasions such as direct and indirect discrimination, harassment, and victimization (Phillips, 2013, p. 65). Although there are laws that protect employees and employers against discrimination such as the Equality Act (Phillips, 2013): There are still concerns of discrimination within racial, gender, and social groups, in this case, the main focus will be between Caucasians employers and Hispanics employees (Weaver, 2011, p. 2723). Stereotypes, which are beliefs or schemas of groups and members (Baron & Branscombe, 2012), arise between people one necessarily cannot identify with. By the same token, these stereotypes produce negative attitudes towards one another that can potentially lead to discrimination and prejudice (Jones, 2001).

Research shows that there’s a great disadvantage in the workplace for minorities, thus these differences lead to ra...

... middle of paper ...

...erceiving discrimination on the job: Legal consciousness,

workplace context, and the construction of race discrimination. Law & Society Review, 44(2), 269-298.

Jones, M. (2001). Stereotyping Hispanics and Whites: Perceived differences in social roles as a

determinant of ethnic stereotypes. The Journal of Social Psychology, 131(4), 469-476.

Phillips, L. (2013). Prejudice in the workplace. Retrieved from

http://rcnpublishing.com/doi/pdfplus/10.7748/ns2013.10.28.5.65.s55

Ramasubramanian, S. (2010). Television viewing, racial attitudes, and policy preferences:

Exploring the role of social identity and intergroup emotions in influencing support for affirmative action. Communication Monographs, 77(1), 102-120. doi: 10.1080/03637750903514300

Weaver, C. (2011). Hispanic prejudice in the United States. Journal of Applied Social

Psychology, 41, 2723-2738.

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