Diversity and Equality at Work: Opportunities and Challenges - Literature review Example

Diversity and equality at work: opportunities and challenges Table of Contents Introduction 3 Critical Literature 3 Opportunities and challenges of diversity at the workplace 3 Opportunities and challenges of equality at the workplace 5 Differences in opinions of authors 7 Conclusion 8 Reference 10 Bibliography 12 Introduction Increasing globalization in the world has called for greater interaction between people belonging to diverse cultures, backgrounds, beliefs than ever before. The era of people living isolated lives and working individually are no longer existent. They are now open to a worldwide economy in which they are confronted with competition from almost all continents in the world. This is the reason why all profit as well as non profit organizations are increasingly emphasizing on the need to indulge in creativity in diversity. Capitalizing and maximising on diversity has emerged as one of the fundamental requirements in organizations today. However it is also realized that there must also be a certain level of equality existing in the diverse workforce in order to manage them successfully. Organizations are increasingly trying to impose equality among the diverse work culture with the view to maintain cohesiveness and collaboration. The project seeks to bring forth various arguments put forth by authors on the subject. This includes their views and suggestions regarding the various opportunities and challenges posed by equality and diversity at the workplace. The areas in which the authors are in agreement or disagreement on the subject are highlighted. Finally the project concludes by summarizing on the core context spoken about in the literature. Critical Literature Opportunities and challenges of diversity at the workplace Researchers and practitioners’ views have been particularly favourable towards organizations upholding diversity in their culture. According to the views of Stephen, G. Butler, who is the co-chair of the Business Higher Education Forum, diversity in organizations has the ability to yield higher competitive advantage and generate greater productivity. This is the reason why he has emphasized on the need for organizations to become ‘totally inclusive’ in nature and focus more on diversity issues. He has greatly emphasized on the American economy in this regard, saying that diversity is an asset that the country’s organizations possesses and must not ignore at any cost. He believes that valuing and managing diversity must form a key component of the nation’s organizations which could improve workplace productivity considerably (Green, López, Wysocki, Kepner, 2008, p.2). According to Parvis (2003), with the increasing demands of the global competition and external changes organizations are focussing on redefining their diversity strategies. It is seen that organizations which are more diverse in terms of their culture and are better equipped to cater demands of a diverse workforce are in a better position to remain competitive in the market. However, regarding the ways in which organizations frame their diversity programs or manage diversity, Clemons and McLaughlin (2004) have claimed that diversity programs can only be effective if they are designed in such a way which assists employers in achieving organizational goals (Cunningham & Green, 2007, p.2). The effectiveness of diversity programs necessarily depends on how organizations encourage and motivate their employees to work with others through interdependence and collaboration. According to the views of Esty et al., (1995), diversity can be beneficial for both employer and associates. Even though the associates remain interdependent at the workplace, respect towards their mutual differences can enhance productivity. The prevalence of diversity can reduce lawsuits and at the same time increase the chances of market opportunities, creativity, recruitment and the image of the business (Green, López, Wysocki, Kepner, 2008, p.2). Some authors have different views regarding the existence of diversity in organizations. There are some authors who have brought forth the various challenging issues that diversity creates in organizations. One of the fundamental challenges that are confronted with managers is that corporations find diversity management as being extremely expensive upsets the productivity at the workplace and disrupts the work activities completely (Mathews, 1998). The external environmental changes have called for reviewing of the human resource programs as to how they may transform the workforce increasingly flooded by immigrants, minorities, females and older workers into a pool of productive, adaptive and productive resource. Organizations are increasingly faced with the difficulty in managing these employees having diverse lifestyles and backgrounds. They face difficulty in convincing managers to facilitate productive management of this ever changing workforce (White, n.d., p.2). Opportunities and challenges of equality at the workplace Arising out of the changes in the workforce and its composition, organizations are also increasingly seen to be focussing on implementing equality standards in their work practices. According to the views of Ely & Thomas (2001), organizations entertaining diverse workforce must also implement equality practices in order to manage the same. They have emphasized on the fairness and discrimination perspective of the workforce to attain success in the long run. The perspective is characterized with the view or belief in a culturally diverse workforce as being a moral imperative for the fair treatment and ensuring of justice of all group members in society. The success of diversity can only be attained when there is fair treatment of members during recruitment, hiring and promotion, suppression of prejudicial attitudes and elimination of discrimination (Ely & Thomas, 2001, p.19). Researchers have highlighted on the existence of diversity in the organizations in UK. However this coupled with the measures of equality that is taken by the UK government at the same time. Dickens (1997), have said that the labour force statistics in Britain reflects continuous disadvantage for ethnic minorities and women. He also provides with research evidence regarding the increasing discrimination among employees in the field of employment (Dickens, 1997, p.2). That is why the need for maintaining equality at the workplace is important. Some of the aspects which have been recognised by authors are discussed. Firstly it is crucial to develop a culture which includes everyone even belonging to different backgrounds and at the same time value the individual differences. This is because organizations function through interdependence among employees and inequality would be the main barrier towards mutual dependency and benefit. The importance of equality has been especially recognised in terms of rewards and benefits, pay gaps between employees, and occupational segregation for employees. The aim is also to ensure that workforce and the public at large have confidence in the professional standards of the organization and the misconduct procedures of the same (Hakim, 2006, p.290). The following figures would reflect the high degree of inequality in the workforce in UK. Figure 1: Unemployment rates: by ethnic group and sex, 2004 (Source: Whysall & Ellwood, 2006, p.39) Differences in opinions of authors The fight against discrimination and racism has been continuing for years. Thus there have also been efforts of managing the negative effects of such diversity at the workplaces. According to Blommaert & Verschueren, racism and discrimination account for some of primary concerns of organizations since long. There have also been numerous anti-discrimination legislations and affirmative actions taken by the government of USA and UK. Diversity management has made rapid advances which has raised debates by authors regarding the forms of equality measures taken by organizations. Parekh, (1997) has contradicted on the fact that it is difficult to arise at a common consensus about the notion of equality. Equality is perceived differently by different individuals which makes the equality measures give rise to greater diversity at the workplace. On the other hand diversity management argues that the principle of sameness is considered to detrimental for the people because it is based on the fact that there exists only one way of doing a work (Lorbiecki & Jack, 2000, p.25). Another area of contradiction of views between authors is on the fact diversity at the workplace yields greater productivity but at the same time increases the chances of discrimination among employees which can be detrimental for the prospects of the organization. Thus they have emphasized more on equality legislations which ensure there is no discrimination at the place of work and the diversity can be exploited and used positively for the benefit of the organization. Conclusion The critical analysis of the opinions and suggestions of researchers and practitioners in the field of equality and diversity at the workplace reveals that today’s organizations have been increasingly indulging in employing diverse workforces. This is primarily because of the fact the different employees come with diverse ideas and beliefs which can be shared and used for the organizational benefit. Also with the increase in globalization the notion of diversity has become imperative in organizations. This is reason why researchers like Green, López, Wysocki, Kepner, (2008) have spoken in favour of diversity programs. However, the maim contradiction arises out of the fact that even while employing a diverse workforce the focus is to treat them as equals. Otherwise the fruits of diversity cannot be harnessed properly. Authors like Ely & Thomas (2001) thus have particularly emphasized on equality and anti-discriminatory measures. In this context the condition of the UK workforce is especially worth mentioning as one which is characterized by immense workforce diversity. The high unemployment in the different ethnic groups in the population also coveys the same message which is the reason why there has been active anti discrimination measures undertaken by the UK government. Reference Cunningham, D. D. & Green, D. D. (2007). Diversity as a Competitive Strategy in the Workplace. Journal of Practical Consulting, Vol. 1 Iss. 2, 2007, pp. 51-55. Retrieved on October 10, 2011 from http://www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/jpc/vol1iss2/cunningham/Cunningham_Green_Vol1Iss2.pdf. Dickens, L. (1997). Gender, race and employment equality in Britain: inadequate strategies and the role of industrial relations actors. Industrial Relations Journal 28:4. ISSN 0019-8692. Retrieved on October 10, 2011 from http://www.qc-econ-bba.org/instructors/Hull104/BUS393/DickensL-%20Gende%20RaceAndEmploymentEqualityInBritain.pdf. Ely, R. J. & Thomas, D. A. (2001). Cultural Diversity at Work: The Effects of Diversity Perspectives on Work Group Processes and Outcomes. Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 46, No. 2. (Jun., 2001), pp. 229-273. Retrieved on October 10, 2011 from http://web.mit.edu/cortiz/www/Diversity/Ely%20and%20Thomas,%202001.pdf. Green, K. A., López, L., Wysocki, A. & Kepner, K. (2008). Diversity in the Workplace: Benefits, Challenges, and the Required Managerial Tools1. Retrieved on October 10, 2011 from http://intranet.hsgd.org/IndexPageMaterials/Diversity%20Article.pdf. Hakim, C. (2006). Women, careers, and work-life preferences. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, Vol. 34, No. 3, August 2006. Retrieved on October 10, 2011 from http://blog.lib.umn.edu/puot0002/3004/Women,%20careers,%20and%20work-life%20preferences.pdf. Lorbiecki, A. & Jack, J. (2000). Critical Turns in the Evolution of Diversity Management. British journal of Management, Vol 11, Special Issue, S17- S31 (2000). 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