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Managing for inclusion: equality and workplace diversity: Week 7 (is it…
Managing for inclusion: equality and workplace diversity: Week 7
What is diversity?
Term used to describe differences among individuals
– Age, race, ethnicity, gender, physical characteristics (height, weight etc.), mental and physical ability, personality, sexual orientation etc.
– Workplace diversity therefore refers to differences among people at work
– In addition to the above differences, workforce diversity also encompass differences among workers in:
Religious beliefs, educational attainment, experience, family status, parental status, pregnancy etc.
is it necessary to manage diversity?
Australian population:
– 28% born overseas, third highest in the world
– Overseas-born residents contribute to more than 50 per cent of population growth
– over 300 languages
– Those born in Europe are declining while those born in Asia and Africa are increasing
– Overseas-born population from Asia and Africa have proportionally larger young (0-14 years) and working age (15- 64 years) populations compared to those from Europe
– Indigenous Australians comprise of approximately 2.4% of the population
– Over the next 50 years, approximately ¼ Australians will be 65 years or older
– Increasing labour force participation of women
– Increase in dual-earner households with dependent children, single-parent households, and the ‘sandwich generation’
– Embracing the LGBT community
Part 2
One of 4 core labour standards of the International Labour Organisation (ILO)
– Elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation
Anti-discrimination, equal opportunity, and affirmative action legislation in Australia
Increasing diversity of consumers due to globalisation
More than managing cultural diversity, a necessary precondition for continuous innovation
Changing composition of the labour market – attracting the right kind of talent and retaining such talent
Not about merely meeting ‘legal’ or ‘moral’ obligations, but embedding the process in business strategy
development
Social identity theory and diversity
Social identity theory stipulates that individuals validate their social identity by favouring their ‘ingroup’ at the expense of ‘out-groups’
Individuals perceive that it is ‘easier’ to communicate with other members of their in-group as they are more predictable, trustworthy, and more likely to reciprocate favours
A shared social identity increases perceived differences between individuals belonging to different social categories (i.e. between in- and out-groups)
The success of organisational diversity initiatives is dependent up
Social dilemmas of workplace diversity
Individual participation
The success of organisational diversity initiatives is dependent upon the degree to which its employees embrace/resist them
– Formation of subgroups along social categories may result in restricting the movement of information
– Due to exclusion, employees may form further informal subgroups resulting in subgroup competition
Managerial participation
– A consequence of the dilemma of individual participation
– Managers likely to recruit individuals they perceive to be similar to them (i.e. their social category)
– Individuals may also seek out managers that are similar to them
– Those that do not ‘fit in’ often leave resulting in a homogenous workforce
– Can result in ‘power battles’
Organisational participation
– Dependent upon how well the social dilemmas relating to individual and managerial participation are addressed
– Incorrect perceptions in relation to the relationship between homogenous workers and employee turnover
– Belief that diversity initiatives benefit society not organisations implementing them, organisations bear the costs and accrue little benefit
– Focus on short-term costs and not long-term benefits
– Creates barriers for selecting highly talented candidates due to ill informed and short sighted views
Overcoming social dilemmas of workplace diversity
The management problem - overcoming individual & managerial participation
– Aligning individual interest with organisational diversity initiatives by restructuring incentives
– Assisting individuals in realising that their self interest can be facilitated by embracing organisational diversity initiatives
– Developing measurable objectives for diversity
– Developing superordinate goals which can only be achieved through cooperation amongst diverse members
– Creating a work environment that encourages and facilitates communication between diverse employees
– Keeping work team/group sizes small
– Measuring managerial performance from a long-term perspective
– Embedding the value of diversity to mission, vision statements
Public policy problem
The public policy problem – overcoming organisational participation
– Avoiding the creation of legislation that results in ‘protected classes’ of workers
– Instead developing legislation that requires firms to develop and implement diversity initiatives that result in sustainable success
– Not focusing on encouraging just diversity, but ‘effective’ diversity
– Educational curricula at primary/secondary level
The glass ceiling
What is the glass ceiling?
A phenomenon that limits the advancement of women and other minority groups to senior managerial positions in organisations
– only 25% of key management positions on company boards are held by women in Australia
– However, in the public service 40% of all senior executive positions filled by women
– Eastern European and Scandinavian nations lead the way in abolishing the glass ceiling
Overcoming the glass ceiling
Changing societal norms around the role of women and eradicating gender bias
Eliminating the stigmatisation of men who choose to stay home for family reasons
Introduction of paid-parental leave schemes, especially for men that goes beyond ‘one week’
Introducing gender quotas for company boards
Realising that a more representative blend of women and men in senior roles just makes good business sense
Conclusion
Workplace diversity a reality of modern organisations, especially in Australia
Workplace diversity both influences and is influenced by the management functions of POLC
Individuals form in- and out-groups based on their social identities
Social categories arising from in- and out-groups result in three social dilemmas requiring solutions at the individual, managerial, and organisational levels
The glass ceilings impact employment and working conditions of women and other minorities
http://monash.online.clickview.com.au.ezproxy.lib.monash.edu.au/libraries/videos/3715670