Employer Responsibilities and Employee Rights
Discussion Question 2
Part A Summarize the influences of diversity within a workplace.
Part B What are the different ways in which women experience discrimination at the workplace?
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Employer Responsibilities and Employee Rights
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Employer Responsibilities and Employee Rights
Part A: Summarize the influences of diversity within the workplace.
Diversity is the presence of different languages, cultures, ethnicities, affinity orientations, races, genders, and religious sects of individuals within an organization (Green et al., 2002). Diversity can be beneficial to employees and employers if properly managed for the general good of an organization. Individuals must respect the differences that exist between them to ensure that a cohesive work environment is established. Diversity within a company can increase productivity and reduce the chances of discrimination lawsuits. In the modern business environment, creativity and flexibility are very important. Therefore, diversity is crucial to ensure that an organization achieves competitiveness. It results in different ideas being generated within a workplace and can improve communication effectiveness is all employees are tolerant of their differences. If not properly managed, diversity could result in ineffective communication and conflict within a workplace (Green et al., 2002). Intolerance to differences can result in reduced effectiveness and efficiency within a company.
Part B: What are the different ways in which women experience discrimination in the workplace?
Women face various discrimination problems in the workplace. They may be discriminated against for being pregnant or being young mothers (Gregory, 2003). Employers may avoid promoting or hiring women since they may not wish to suffer the inconveniences of maternity leaves. Some employers assume that mothers cannot work for long hours since they need to take care of their children. Women are also discriminated against based on their dressing and physical appearance. Attractive women are sometimes selected for job positions instead of more qualified women. Sometimes an attractive woman may not be hired despite being qualified since an employer is afraid of sexual harassment lawsuits where there are many male employees. Women may also be discriminated against for not looking physically capable to handle some tasks (Gregory, 2003). A woman can be discriminated against for looking weaker than her male colleagues.
References
Green, K. A., López, M., Wysocki, A., & Kepner, K. (2002). Diversity in the workplace: Benefits, challenges, and the required managerial tools. University of Florida, 1(4), 1-3.
Gregory, R. F. (2003). Women and workplace discrimination: Overcoming barriers to gender equality. Rutgers University Press.
