Diversity in the workplace is a subject that has gained increased attention in the workplace over the past few years. After all, the impact of affirmative action and equal employment opportunity programs on the nation's work force is undeniable. Women and minorities were the first to dramatically alter the face of the economic mainstream, while gays, persons with disabilities and senior citizens followed not far behind. The result is a diverse American labor force representing a microcosm of our society - yet one that continues to struggle with its identity. Diversity as a social condition is not new to America. We were founded as a nation of Diversity. “America has always been a merger of cultures and, as such, has undergone periods of discomfort as the world's melting pot” (HistoryChannel.com). Ostensibly, the modern American workplace is a simmering pool of diversity. Focused in its early years on racial equality, the movement widened its scope to include equality based on gender, age, sexual orientation and disabilities. And as members of these various groups struggled for recognition, they developed a new sense of pride in what made them distinctive.
This sense of pride in diversity has led the nation to where it is today. It is important to identify various dimensions of workplace diversity. The first dimension involves primary levels of diversity. That is, people with disabilities, gender, race, color, ethnicity, sexual orientation, creed, religion, and age are primary dimensions of diversity. These basic groups require the greatest degree of management dexterity and attention because they play an important part in workforce interrelationships and communication. These areas are also more prone to conflicts and negative reactions among employees. Managers must recognize that there is a need to train, inform, and sensitize their employees to deal with issues relating to this type of diversity. Consequently, managers must recognize the effects of diversity in their firms and plan to deal with potential conflicts. They must also recognize the different strengths of individuals and groups so that they cay utilize their skills more effectively. The second dimension of diversity deals with individuals from different social strata. For example, education levels differ among various employees. This may result in conflicts between less skilled or educated wo...
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..., they need to skip the personal stereotypes that might result in potential discrimination, by applying interpersonal skills to accommodate the needs of others who are culturally different. The main goal of diversity is to capitalize on people's differing talents by bringing different people together from all backgrounds. By gaining a better understanding of these emerging issues and having appropriate strategies, proactive managers increase their chances of managing diversity in a more effective manner.
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Workplace diversity is broadly defined as an inclusive company culture that strives to respect variations in employee personality, work style, age, ethnicity, gender, religion, socioeconomics, education and other dimensions. A company that favors certain characteristics about its employees runs the risk of lawsuits, turnover and reduced productivity. Tom 's topics will include: State and Federal employment discrimination laws and how they differ; avoiding discrimination claims; properly handing employee complaints of discrimination; Diversity is more than race and sex, and Inclusion is more than being nice; and diversity and cultural awareness during a time of unprecedented economic
Diversity is the piece that makes the modern workforce so amazingly unique and challenging at the same time. Valuing diversity means creating a work environment that respects and includes differences, recognizing the unique contributions these differences can bring, and maximizing the potential of all employees and the company. In The Loudest Duck, the author describes what often happens when diverse individuals enter the modern diverse workplace. Liswood gives great examples, analogies and shares simple insights into the hardships of bringing people from diverse backgrounds together to accomplish goals. The main emphasis is put on recognizing that diversity strictly by statistics of different races and/or genders present is insufficient.
Diversity is a reality in today’s workplace. It shouldn’t be merely tolerated but valued for what it brings to the organization. ‘It’s not about assisting the individual to “fit into” the corporate culture by “fixing” what is different about them.1
Pollar, Odette & Gonzalez, Rafael. (2011). Dynamics of diversity: strategic programs for your organization. Boston, MA: Crisp Pub Inc.
Generally when someone begins speaking about diversity in the workplace, thoughts of Affirmative Action, racial diversity, or even sexual equality are usually foremost in our thoughts. However, diversity in the workplace really is so much more than this, we must also consider aging workers, handicapped workers, those with alternative lifestyles, and even physical traits to name others (For the sake of simplification, throughout this paper these will usually be included in the term, minorities).
Workplace diversity is one of the most key elements that any business and corporation must have and utilize. The numerous types of workplace diversity are what make us function so well both as a society and as effective businesses. The purpose to having a diverse workplace is to expand the knowledge and experience of all that are within that company. These diversity aspects are what make a successful and highly functioning work environment. Diverse workplace is critical because it embodies a compilation of all human ideas, cultures and backgrounds put into an inventive and forward thinking group of individuals. Managing individuals are looking for an A-team group type atmosphere that will be highly functioning with inventive ideas and able to apply all sorts of ideals garnered from there co-workers because of the diversity.
Diversity in the workplace is very important in today’s global workforce because workers in the economy all over the world are currently made up of many different ethnicities, varied cultures, beliefs, and backgrounds. People that are involved in management such as managers, and supervisors could greatly benefit from being accustomed to diversity in the workplace because their job entails dealing with a multicultural work environment on a daily basis. Knowing how to handle diversity in the workforce and having the necessary skills for supervisors would be beneficial not only to them but also to the success of the company and economy because a strong, diversified workforce will create a more “creative, innovative, and productive workforce.” (Kerby, 2012).
First, the management may be able to apportion the right resources and efforts in hiring the best and most diversified employees. Different perceptions on diversity indicate that diversity not only has benefits to an organisation but also presents several challenges, especially to the management. The different perceptions on diversity imply that managers should focus on solving diversity-associated problems to create an integrated workplace (Klarsfeld, 2016). To establish constructive diversity at the workplace, managers should institute feasible diversity-friendly policies, vision and
Today’s modern workforce is made up of a diverse group of individuals. People of different nationality, race, creed, color, age, sex, and sexual orientation work side by side every day. This diversity has many advantages, but it also ads a level of complexity to management. The potential for discrimination is real, and needs to be managed so as not to incur lawsuits, loss of productivity, and unhealthy working conditions. Happy employees are productive employees, so it is in any organizations best interests to ensure that discrimination does not happen, but unfortunately, it does.
The impact of diversity in the workplace is contingent upon several factors. Across companies diversified workforces are becoming increasingly common. To successfully manage a diverse workforce, organizations are ensuring that employees understand how their values and stereotypes influence their behavior toward others of different gender, ethnic, racial, or religious backgrounds; are gaining an appreciation of cultural differences among themselves; and behaviors that isolate or intimidate minorities are being improved (Noe et al., 2010, pg. 302).
This paper is aimed at providing a framework for discussion of diversity and how it pairs with demographic characteristics. It is divided into four parts. Part I represents diversity in the workforce, which reflects the rational of organizations and how they handle diversity in the occupations of their workers. Parts II characterize diversity and age, as it responds to the fact that older people have the skill set to keep them working well past retirement age. Part III denotes religion, where as more employers are beginning to recognize the need to allow employees to take time to pray. Part IV symbolizes the personality traits in diversity and how “different” is not always viewed as wrong but can be an incentive to other employees.
Barak, M. E. (2005). Managing diversity: toward a globally inclusive workplace. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications.
Diversity is a highly important issue in today’s business, especially in a globalized company. Workplace diversity helps to get better solutions to business problems (Schawbel, 2012). When you have a group of individ...
Diversity issues will gain importance because of the effective interactions and communications between the people. Diversity is the reality of the business world. It can have negative and positive impact on the employee’s behaviour towards work and work results. This also depends on how the employees have understood it and grasps it.