Workplace Diversity - Are Nigerians Good People to Work with - Essay Example

Diversity in the Workplace Many concerns are growing pertaining implications of the increasing diversity in the workforce which has grown tremendously. These concerns are not always marched with actions, some firms have begun to evaluate and formulate policies to monitor and curb the effects of diversity. This report is based on Nigeria, a country in Africa. The choice of using Nigeria is because of its diversity and positioning in the continent. The study shows the mode of effectively working with people from other nations by managing diversity. In order to manage diversity; cultural, political and social differences has to be understood and appreciated. The study looks at the experience people of American origin meets when working with the Nigerians. The various stereotypes of these persons are paramount in creating awareness of the person to expect in the workplace. The interaction is a two way stride in that either side has certain perception towards the other. This paper has found out that Nigerians are good people to work with; they are welcoming and are gradually adopting modernization. Their life style is easy to get involved in and therefore work related diversity can be easily harnessed to bring the best out of diverse people in a work place. Workplace Diversity Introduction Cultural or work diversity means the variation of people in a work place due to race, ethnicity and gender variation. Cultures have consequences that can be experienced though difficult to describe. Many people view it in terms of customs, religion, clothing and lifestyle. The characteristics of foreign culture can be identified even without engaging in a conversation with a person from that culture. However, a business unit can handle ethnic and cultural differences for example in restaurants, there could be foods from different ethnic divides; people can therefore be able to appreciate cultures of one another. Today, many organizations are struggling to handle the consequences occurring when people with different cultural views, there arises misunderstandings and conflicts due to dissimilar norms and expectations (Jackson, 1992, p. 23). Today’s workplace is made up of many people therefore organizations can no longer assume that all employees have same beliefs. This has forced managers to learn to manage people through supervision and motivation. Nigeria Nigeria is the most populated nation in Africa and most developing; its population is over a hundred million. Here, capital ideas and institutions vary with geographical conditions, “Nigeria is a multiethnic nation with over 250 ethnic groups and languages, each having a number of distinguishing characteristics” (Falola, 2001, p. 4). Spoken language Although Nigeria has many English speaking people, the challenge arises due to the fact that these people speak Pidgin English, this could provide more obstacles in the development and success of an industry. Although English is predominant when speaking to children, traditional languages have not been ruled out yet, “both the Igbo language and English language including American manner of speaking are spoken at home with the English language of communication especially parents speaking with children” (Ibezim, 2008, p. 108) Women harassment A report on employees in Nigeria founds out that women are being sexually harassed, “more educated women were more likely to complete the survey and indicated that sexual harassment is pervasive in the Nigerian workplace.” (Parboteeah and Cullen, 2013, p.175). Apart from discrimination in workplace, Nigerian women face other abuses and discrimination. They are not entrusted with technical jobs as compared to men; they are viewed to be physically unfit to handle any technicality. Whenever they get a favor for employment, it comes along with solicitation for sex, as for the women bankers, they are given stricter targets and are required to meet them, to this they have to extra ordinarily appeal to men so as to retain their jobs. It is hard for a woman to get promotion or a pay increase, Aka says that “the men are bosses and they do a lot of wrong things against women with impunity. There are no laws against discrimination, sexual harassment or retaliation at the work-place or the society” (2012, p. 334). The composition of the workplace is reported by Oni to be continually changing, “it is now full of diverse group with many races and culture and increasing number of women” (2012, p.22), with generational change, Nigeria seems to have started to appreciate the dynamism of workforce, women and youth have a place in the workplace, their percentage is increasing on a daily basis, though this is globally important, it creates a lot of conflict and tension in the workplace. The remedy here is that workers need to be sensitized to appreciate social and cultural diversity and hence promote social and cultural interaction. Managers and leaders in the workplace seem to make decisions that favor those familiar to them in terms of gender and tribe, this creates a harsh judgment amongst the workers, this upset the workers since the decisions and perception could affect their performance, pay and status. A worker education needs to be revitalized so as to enable workers to be open to various groups in the organization and thus promotes togetherness. Oni (2012) says that worker’s education is an essential device if the workplace is to experience harmony which will habitually affect the economy. Dressing mode Dressing mode in Nigeria is very controversial because people mix this practice with fashions, belief and traditions. In some cases, the dressing mode is taken simply to make customers and clients to understand the mood in the office and sometimes to promote the understanding of the environment. Most foreigners have a difficulty in identifying the exact rank of the person simply because the way they have dressed is so much confusing, everyone appears to be the boss (Nwosu, 2012, p. 175). When it comes to fashions, Nigerians are very creative, they like changing fashions and dress according to the occasions, ceremoniously, and they like the traditional clothing. Despite this, workplace is among the few places whereby there has been influence of changing dressing mode. That’s where the European style of dressing has chipped in, this influence is felt in the southern part of Nigeria, the Northern part are yet to be influenced, “the North is more resistant, and the majority of the people still go to work in a simplified babban-riga style garment” (Falola, 2001, p.113). Dressing and fashions are also connected to socialization and status, they are used to separate gender, traditional clothing for the children are modeled according to the elders, certain colors are believed to belong to certain community and clan. Some communities have already adopted the European style of dressing; Ibezim (2008) says to have seen the Igbo children and other Nigerians dress like the Americans while attending their work. In one of the interviews carried out by Ibezim (2008), one of the couples who had been interviewed and was from Igbo organizational meeting was dressed in traditional way, this was just one of the seven couples to be interviewed, and the others had American attire on them. Nigerians enjoy a very good relationship with the Americans; this has been intensified by the growing number of American citizens of Nigerian origin. Since the increase of Nigerians as US immigrants, it has fueled unification and welfare. For example there is intermarriage between the Nigerians living in U.S and the Americans, the children born can either take the Nigerian or American citizen ship, or both. Nigerian positive stereotype The following are associated with the Nigerians,:- Positive stereotypes Modest Open-minded Hardworking Educated Nigerians are very smart Business minded They like being natural and conservative Negative stereotypes Lots of witchcraft Robbery Aggressive people Prostitution Shilgba (2011) says that Nigerians can steal the public money, engage in armed robbery, rape and forgery, in most case, the pretext is that they are jobless and that the government should provide employment for them, they are ready to collude with foreigners to steal from the nation. Nigerian lifestyle Although there is a lot of poverty in Nigeria, people are able to collect money and elevate the society. This allows the family members to access better education system and enjoy the western life including owning better homes. Most often, Nigerians without wealth have to live in poorly constructed houses and live in crowded areas especially if they are in the urban centers. In rural regions, poor people live in mud –walled houses, others construct them using bamboo. Traditional roles are based on gender and are currently changing especially in the cities. But in majority places, they are still male dominated. In the southern part, women are freer but are expected to look after the children and home chores. Wealth are shared among the men and are passed to sons, therefore it’s hard for a woman to own wealth. Nigerian food are often based on starchy food, these contains maize, rice and cassava, millet and sorghum for porridge are also available, stew are often flavored with a traditional flavor known s the okra. The southern part is also blessed with a wide range of fruits namely: Papaya, Oranges and Mangoes. Bananas are also found. Nigerians especially non Muslims use locally brewed alcohol made from palm wines. In general, Nigerians are polite and outgoing, their communication begins from polite enquiries, they ask about the welfare of the person and the family. According to “Kwintessentials.co.uk”, foreigners who take time know and get a Nigerian friend would realize that he has acquired an inner circle of family and friend; they welcome visitors and are ready to live with them (n.d). Workplace multiplicity on global level represents availability of challenges and opportunities to both the individual and the organization. Opportunities, individuals and organizations needs to be developed so that it can serve the challenge facing the global leaders. Ting-Toomey argues that “successful business today depends on effective globalization. Effective globalization, in part, depends on dealing with a diverse workforce” (1999, p. 5). For this to be achieved, the following needs to be addressed:- Understanding of global politics, culture and global environment. Creating diverse cultural perspective basic for business practice Acquiring basic skills necessary for networking with people from varied culture. Being flexible in living and working with different culture Learning to interact with people of different nationality Effective communication across different cultures can be achieved by learning essential concepts and skills on different communities. According to Ting-Toomey (1999), it has been noted that U.S. citizens working on international levels are commonly competent but they lack proper intercultural communication skills that would enable them perform in the new culture. Most U.S businesses have often overlooked the competence of their employees on international level during the selection process. References Aka Jubril O. (2012). Nigerian Women of Distinction, Honour and Exemplary Presidential Qualities. Bloomington: Trafford Publishing. Falola Toyin. (2001). Culture and Customs of Nigeria. Westport: Greenwood Publishing Group. Ibezim Felicia E. (2008).Cultural Conflicts and Crises in Marriages Among the Igbo Ethnic Group of Nigerian-Americans Living in Metropolitan New York. Ann Arbor: ProQuest Jackson S. E. (1992). Diversity in the Workplace: Human Resource Initiatives. New York: Guilford Press. “Kwintessential.co.uk”. (n.d) Nigeria- Language, Culture, Customs and Etiquette. Retrievedfrom:http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/resources/global-etiquette/nigeria.html Nwosu Charles. (2012). Cleaning and Re-Indoctrinating Nigeria to the Root. Bloomington: AuthorHouse. Oni Soji. (2012). Revitalizing Nigerian Education in Digital Age. Bloomington: Trafford Publishing. Parboteeah K. P. and Cullen J. B. (2013). Business Ethics. Oxon: Routledge. Shilgba Leonard K. (2011). From My Heart the Black Race: Myths, Realities, and Complexes. Durham: Strategic Book Publishing. Ting-Toomey Stella. (1999). Communicating Across Cultures. New York: Guilford Press. Read More