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The impact of workplace diversity in an organization
Reflection on workforce diversity
The impact of workplace diversity in an organization
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Diversity in the workplace can be controversial. It is mostly controversial when it is considered negatively. Thankfully there are many laws to protect the rights of many minorities who are usually discriminated against in the workplace. Interestingly, since companies “have to” hire applicants without discriminating, they found that it is actually beneficial to have diversity in the work environment. There are many advantages to having diversity in age, gender, and disabled employees in the workforce.
Age diversity is healthier and more interesting in the workplace. It becomes a learning experience for both young and old age groups. Many young employees learn from the older groups that have been a part of the company longer. Likewise, many older employees learn about the new, fresh ideas from the younger workers. Both age groups tend to balance each other out. While the younger employees tend to be fun and agile, they usually do not have the discipline or the stamina as the older workers, so it is good to have the older workers in the company to help keep the younger guys on point. Young workers are easier to train; therefore, they retain the company’s goals and standards easily. The age groups are different, so they also have different experiences and insights which make it better for the work environment. There may be times when tempers and attitudes can get out of control, so it is important that good managers work closely with the groups to makes sure there is fairness. Even though there may be conflict between the age groups, it needs to be understood that they are both needed in the company and both contribute to the company in their own ways. (Moore)
In the old days, men were the dominators in the business world. They usually had leadership titles and high paying jobs. On the other hand, the women were expected to be homemakers. There were few women in the workforce, however, their jobs were usually subordinates, in lower level positions, and the pay was minimal. Today, the women are taking over the workforce. There are many companies showing higher levels of gender diversity. Men and women do not share the same approach or ideas, which is beneficial to the company. The differences create a balance with fresh and varied ideas.
Cañas, K. A., & Sondak, H. (2014). Opportunities and challenges of workplace diversity: Theory, cases, and exercises (3rd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.
Diversity can be differences in age, gender, ethnicity, and religion. Having such a diverse workforce can be very challenging. (1) Today’s workforce is very diverse in respect to age. Before, corporate America consisted of workers ranging from twenty one up to late thirties to early forties. Now, we see people in their mid to late fifties going back to work. This trend has both advantages and disadvantages. One advantage of an older employee over a younger employee is his ability to use his years of experience in situations where a younger employee lacks experience. Another advantage for an older employee is his built relationship with existing customers. The disadvantage of an older employee over a younger employee is his inability to quickly adapt to his changing environment. Younger employees are more “hungry” compared to their older counter parts. Their hunger is fired by their goal to quickly move up the corporate ladder.
First, our company should understand the importance of gender diversity. In the first article “Why Workplace Gender Diversity Matters”, Anne Marsan pointed out directly that most tech companies lack of gender diversity. Then she explained several reasons why gender diversity matters to companies. Using logos, she mentioned that women in U.S. purchased 50 percent of computers, 50 percent of cars and 80 percent of consumer goods. In other words, organizations with gender diversity are better to connect with
Diversity management initiatives are long term and strategic in focus. They strive not only to recruit, but to actively develop, promote and capitalize on the different skills and perspectives of minority employees (Marquis, 2007.) Every day, peopl...
Diversity is a composite of racial, gender, ethnic, nation origin, cultural, attitudinal, social-economic, and personal differences. With the many legal implications and issues surrounding every aspect of the Human Resource function, the human Resource department must be prepared to resolve issues in a timely and cost efficient manner. With the saturation of laws surrounding personnel, nearly every decision made by the Human Resource Department has the potential for legal suits. Even if the Human Resource department has done everything that is required of them, it can still be costly to defend it. That is why supervisors, managers and workers must be trained on managing diversity in the workplace.
Decreasing the disparity among whites and people of color eventually leads to higher productivity, stronger work ethic, and better team functioning. “Diversity enhances and affects group performance in diverse teams” (Van Dijk, et. al., 2013). As stated by researchers Winfred Arthur, Jr. and Dennis Doverspike, to have a diverse and successful working environment, employers and business leaders should work on limiting the role they play in privilege and accept more applicants from minority backgrounds (2005). According to researchers at the Texas A&M University and the University of
Merriam-Webster defines diversity as “the condition of having or being composed of differing elements; especially the inclusion of different types of people (as people of different races or cultures) in a group or organization” (Merriam-Webster, 2016). With diversity including many different elements, the concept of workplace diversity also covers a broad spectrum of topics, and continues to evolve as many companies look to expand globally. This subject has become increasingly important among managers over the last couple of decades, and has helped to reinforce other concepts such as affirmative action and equal opportunity employment. While most people believe that everyone should have the same opportunities available to them, and that we
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). Gender, racial, and ethnic diversity means different things to different people. Some believe that diversity is about quotas, and affirmative action.
The focus of this paper is to elaborate on the changing landscape of work in America during the twenty-first century. According to the researchers, as the economy continues to slowly recover from the recession and economic crisis, more of our baby boomers are reentering the workforce. In addition to the introduction of automation and computer technologies into the workplace, this has dramatically changed the nature of jobs for the older workers (Czaja and Sharit 2009). As stated in the Government Accountability Office in 2006, the number of workers over age 55 is projected to increase significantly over the next 20 years. Evidence shows that ageism, stereotypes, and misinformation about our older population continue to be major issues across
Companies such as Buzztronics are leading the way in the global economy because of their dedication to diversity in the workplace. In order to build a diverse and successful workforce, a business needs to recruit, train, and retain capable and talented minorities.
The emergence of diversity in organizations can be traced to the 1960s when legislation was enacted to prohibit discrimination against ethnicity, gender, national origin, race, and religion. Even though workplace diversity origins began in the aftermath of World War I, it was not until 1961, when President John F Kennedy established the President’s Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO), which was to end discrimination in employment by the government and its contractors (Cañas & Sondak, 2011). Workplace diversity continued to be advanced through the years by Presidents Johnson and Nixon administrations.
Living in a country where it was founded by immigrants, diversity is everywhere you go especially in the workplace. There are many types of diversity; ethnicity, gender, religion and age just to name a few. Working in a diverse organization it can give you a taste of the real world, and what you will deal with wherever you go. There is so much diversity in the world today so it is a benefit to experience it in the workplace as well. You are given the chance to learn so many things from different cultures, why wouldn't you want to work in a diverse organization?
...The importance of the generational mix within an organisation is that it brings about inclusivity and helps generate new innovative ideas that could bring the organisation to its sustained competitive advantage. With each age group with its expectations by interacting with one another, there is knowledge and experience exchange.
Discrimination is a feasible method of making decisions in life based on the group, class, or category to which a person belongs to. “In an ideal world, people would be equal in rights, opportunities, and responsibilities, despite their race or gender. In the world we live in, however, we constantly face all kinds of neglect based on different attributes.” When one hears the word discrimination, the first thought that comes to mind is racial discrimination. In fact, it does not solely have to be racial discrimination. There are many forms of discrimination such as age, disability, transgender, and sex discrimination. This paper will focus on discrimination based on gender, race and age in the workplaces.
Workplace diversity has become a growing concern within organizations. Managers are now challenged with learning new ways to effectively communicate the importance of embracing different races and ethnicities. Diversity encompasses many different characteristics including age, gender, ethnicity, religion and disabilities (Robbins). As of late, age has become more of a concern as the baby boomer generation begins to reach retirement age; many are not retiring early but instead are working well into their seventies. Unfortunately for those baby boomers, the number of retirees decreased during the 2008-2009 recession mostly due to economic struggle. People cannot afford to retire, perhaps because they did not save enough for retirement or had to dip into their retirement fund to survive earlier in life. In addition to age discrimination, gender discrimination is another common diversity issue. According to “Organizational Behavior,” as of 2000, more women are working full time, have more education, and have started to close the earning gap between men and women (Robbins). Most commonly, women are targeted in the workplace fo...