FREE ESSAY ON CULTURAL DIVERSITY

CULTURAL DIVERSITY

Cultural diversity in the workplace is becoming more and more prevalent. Corporations in
all industries are encouraging minorities, women, elderly workers, people with
disabilities as well as foreign workers to join white males in the workplace. The
following analysis will focus on these groups and how companies are encouraging them to
join an ever-expanding workplace. Even if affirmative action is dismantled, diversity of
the workforce is clearly here to stay. Business owners and managers, experts say, will
still need to maintain or step up efforts to recruit and advance ethnic minorities in the
year 2000 and beyond. That's essentially because having a diverse work force and managing
it effectively will simply be good business for various companies. One business leader
who is at the forefront of implementing diversity is the Xerox Corporation. Xerox
implemented their strategy for diversification through an "aggressive, hard driving
affirmative action plan." (Managing Diversity: Lessons from Private Sector, AOL Electric
Library). The company has been successful in grasping Diversity by instilling it in it's
organizational culture and making it management priority. Xerox Corporation has taken on
the imperative responsibility to implement plans that ensure a true representation of the
community in which they are based and upholding a true picture of the globally based
customers they serve. Their strategy is one that sets goals to recruit and retain
minorities for previously restricted positions and hold management accountable for
reaching those goals. It is an approach which has worked well for the organization.
Because they are truly committed to tapping into the expanded creativity minorities
bring, Xerox has moved from the mandatory focus of Affirmative action programs to the
voluntary implementation of a business objective. According to John Fernandez, author of
the book "Managing a Diverse Work Force", white males would make up only fifteen percent
of the net additions to the labor force between 1985 and 2000. White males were already
in the minority, representing only forty-five percent of America's 115 million workers in
1985. Other facts and figures also support the above mentioned trend. This is pointed out
by The Career Exposure Network, a premier on-line career center and Through the 1990's,
people ofjob placement service. According to the Network: color, women and
immigrants will account for 85% of the net growth of the Over the By 2000, women
will be 47% of the labor force nation's labor force. next 20 years the U.S.
population will grow by 42 million. Hispanics will Miami isaccount for 47% of the
growth, Blacks22%, Asians18% and Whites13%. San Francisco is 1/3 Asian American. A more
recent survey2/3 Hispanics. suggests that smaller businesses have been more
successful than larger ones in promoting ethnic minorities into upper management. The
study shows that in businesses with fewer than 500 employees, twenty percent of the
senior managers are minorities, as compared with about 13 percent for businesses with
five hundred or more employees (Thiederman, 162). The reason probably lies in the fact
that the highest net increase of small businesses since the early 1990's have been
minority owned. The number of Hispanic-owned business has grown 76% since the early 90's
proceeded by Asians, Pacific Islanders, American Indians, and Alaskan Natives which grew
61% (Nickels, McHugh, McHugh, 4). Naturally, minority-owned businesses are more opt to
promote their own into managerial positions. Either because the business is family owned
or they have a limited labor pool of applicants. Managing diversity goes 'far beyond'
meeting the legal requirements of equal employment opportunity and affirmative action.
Whereas Affirmative action is based on mandatory compliance regulations designed to bring
the level of representation for minority groups into parity, diversity initiatives within
organizations are voluntary in nature. It takes Affirmative action a step further.
Organizations that incorporate diversity initiatives as a part of their organizational
objectives will be the most prepared they will be to meet the challenges of the next
millenium. Whereas Affirmative Action focuses on including those on the basis of race,
gender, and/or ethnicity, Diversity initiatives, when well implemented, focuses on all
elements of diversity. Management must embrace the inclusion of employees not only with
regard to obvious differences of race, sex, and age but also without regard to such
secondary factors of diversity as marital or family status, sexual orientation and
disabilities. Diversity means optimizing the productivity of ALL people in an
organization. As small companies approach the year 2000, there are some compelling
reasons for expanding their diversity, according to business leaders and experts. One of
the most important reasons is that employers can increase the quality of their workforce.
It would be a mistake for small businesses not to embrace diversity, in this sense. Women
are another major group that has often been underrepresented in the workforce are clearly
below those of white and black males. According to Barbara Bergmann, "The fall in women's
wages relative to men's over the last twenty years suggest that whatever help they have
received from Affirmative action has been modest at best, and has not been enough to
counterbalance the effects of their buffeting from market forces." (Bergmann, p.38) In
today's market, more and more small businesses are being owned and managed by women. "The
Wall Street Journal reported in 1996 that approximately 5.9 million women-owned
businesses were operating in the United States." (Nickels, McHugh, Mchugh P27). Because
of this trend, corporate America needs to recruit women and other minorities into
previously withheld positions in management if they choose to remain competitive. The
owners of these female-run businesses may find it easier to sell to and more desirable to
buy from businesses where women and other minorities are included at management levels.
Resistance to diversity, particularly by white males, poses a major problem. Resentment
may be a result of narrow definitions of diversity that has failed to also include white
males as well as a perception by some that diversity means preferential treatment for
women and other groups. White male anger may also stem from the fear of losing jobs over
a minority as a result of downsizing. Jesse Jackson, a prominent civil rights leader,
released a statement in 1995. In his statement he said, "Those who have been locked out
need the law to protect them from the "tyranny of the majority." We must look at the
remaining gap in wages between men and women, whites and people of color. We must
determine it's necessity by data, not by anecdotes. It is a myth that white males are
being hurt and discriminated against because of Affirmative Action 80% of Tenured
Professorsprograms. White males are 33% of the population, but 92% of the
90% of the U.S. Senate  80% of the U.S. House of Representatives  99.9%
of Professional Athletic Team 97% of School Superintendents Forbes 400
100% of U.S. Presidents (Affirmative Action, P.9,10) In any case,Owners; and it
will be easy to tell when affirmative action is no longer necessary. When an individual
can look around the workforce and see that members of all groups are being employed and
that they are being employed at the high levels as well as at the lower levels, then it
won't be needed anymore. It is possible that American corporations are on that road. The
increasing PRESENCE of women and minorities has altered the way that companies look.
According to the August 14th, 1995 issue of Business Week, companies are using the
following methods to hold on to Focusing on bringing in the best talent, not
onfemale and minority employees: Developing career plans for employees as part
ofmeeting numerical goals Establishing mentoring programs among employees of
sameperformance reviews Promoting minorities to decision-making positions,
notand different races And Holding managers accountable for meeting
diversity goals just staff jobs Diversifying their Board of Directors Despite
such efforts by corporate America, the Glass Ceiling Commission reports that women and
minorities hold just 5% of senior level jobs. Of the minorities who have obtained top
jobs, they are in "soft positions" such as Human Resources with not much decision-making
power (Business Week, Aug.14th '95). In other words, there is still quite a bit of work
to be done. Diversity training has unquestionably taken off like a rocket. At
corporations around the country, the concept, which previously encompassed a narrow range
of sensitivity training programs, has broadened and expanded. Today, diversity is a
serious corporate initiative that is seen as helping those at a disadvantage. Through
their commitment and involvement of diversity issues, Xerox was awarded the prestigious
Malcolm Baldridge quality award in 1989 for its three decade campaign to hire and promote
women as well as minorities (Managing diversity: Lessons from the private sector, AOL
Electric Library). The company has been a leader in the development of diversity
initiatives which include programs designed to improve employee motivation, and teamwork
through helping people to understand differences in gender and race as well as
disabilities. Although some of these programs go back over thirty years to the height of
the Civil Rights Movement, today's diversity initiatives refer to a much wider range of
programs designed to create a well running, cooperative workforce. Many initiatives start
with benchmarking and company-wide goal setting. This then results in various
recruitment, promotional and employee retention programs. These retention programs can
include everything from educational grants to multilevel training programs. Another
valuable retention program can be the redesign of performance review processes. One thing
is for sure, and that is that in order for it to work, diversity training must be able to
incorporate ALL the demographic trends that are taking place in the country. In recent
years, women have become a growing presence in the labor force. As Gary Powell point out,
"The proportion of women, which was 42 percent in 1980 and 45 percent in 1990, is
expected to be 47 percent in the year 2000" (Powell, P.36). Elderly workers are another
major demographic group that has begun to be included in the workforce due to diversity
initiatives and sensitivity training programs. This presents a number of different
challenges for businesses today. Older employees may prefer more time off instead of
other benefits that the younger employees might prefer. There is stronger resentment
against elderly people as compared to women and minorities however, because those
individuals are generally expensive to keep. Most elderly people have high salaries along
with good and expensive benefit packages, including pensions. This creates a situation
where many large companies feel that it is better to downsize these employees and pay
severance packages rather than allowing these employees to stay on and collect top dollar
on their benefit packages. Others seem to think otherwise, The American Association of
Retired Persons believes "that an age-diverse workforce can benefit business
organizations in the long run, and has embarked on research, education, and advocacy
programs to promote age diversity." (Employment Relations Today, Winter 1997).
Nonetheless, diversity initiative programs have put some pressure on corporations and
especially large conglomerates, to include elderly employees into their hiring and
promoting practices. Even when there is a sincere commitment to strive for a diverse
workforce, many times it takes work to change deeply rooted prejudices and stereotypes.
The desire to make it happen must come from the top down if subordinates are to truly get
the message of importance. Unfortunately, many top-level managers are reluctant to change
or alter the very system in which their careers prospered. Backlash by white males is too
often the byproduct of diversity initiatives. In recent years, many white males have
taken a stance against Affirmative Action programs and diversity initiatives claiming
reverse discrimination. But there has been no evidence to support the notion that
Affirmative Action plans are pushing the traditional white male out the door. A study
done by the Department of Labor in 1995 found that 3,000 cases of reverse discrimination
were filed that year alone, but fewer than 100 had sufficient evidence to support the
claim (Kangas P.2) . In efforts to avoid the "division" that can occur within
organizations that implement diversity initiatives, advocates of organizational
cohesiveness go beyond efforts to hire individuals simply on the basis of difference.
Instead, they focus on hiring those with the skills, and abilities most suitable for the
vacancy, regardless of race, age, gender, or ethnicity. Other's recruit people who
represent the company's underlying core values and otherwise demonstrate a high degree of
compatibility. However, it should be noted that when the recruiting and selection process
does not achieve "person-organization fit", the organization may be left with a weak
culture that sends unclear messages about values and provides employees no clear
direction. Proponents of a strong organizational culture believe that a high level of
person-organization fit is advantageous for all parties; employers, new and current
employees, and job seekers. A study of eight large public accounting firms, for example,
looked at compatibility between what new staff accountants valued most in an organization
and what their employers valued most. Researchers found that high compatibility on the
part of employees led to quicker adjustments, higher job satisfaction, and lower
turnover. It should be pointed out that it is estimated that by the year 2000,thirty
percent of the workforce will be 55 or older. This essentially means that corporations
will be forced into incorporating an ever larger portion of the elderly work force into
their sites. Diversity training and sensitivity classes will undoubtedly make this
process a smoother one. Elderly employees will have to continually be trained and
re-trained so that they become more compatible with the person-organization fit that so
many corporations are now stressing and will stress in the future. Unfortunately, people
with disabilities have been excluded from the workforce in the past. As a result,
Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act. This Act in which the key provisions
began to take place in 1992, has prompted thousands of U.S. workers to file
discrimination complaints against their employers which over time could bring profound
changes to the workplace. Many of thee complaints are bringing new issues to the table
with regards to how far an organization must go to accommodate every type of disabled
person. Through the efforts of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, many
restaurants, movie theatres, libraries, malls, and many other public places are being
scoured to find possible infractions of ADA non-compliance. Nearly 80,000 complaints are
being filed annually with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging
discrimination, far surpassing the number of complaints filed by women and minorities in
the first year after those groups were extended civil rights protection in 1964. The
litigation efforts undertaken by the EEOC has been able to recover over 50 million
dollars for victims of discrimination and rose to an all time high in 1997 when it
reached 111 million (www.eeoc.gov). Maybe it's human nature not to do anything until you
get caught short. But the increasing number of violations should be enough to initiate
change that will accommodate the disabled. The last group to be examined is foreign
workers. Unfortunately, have an unjustifiable history of being scapegoated for any
economic problems that this country has faced. Because of this, America has culminated a
staunch tradition of immigration stretching back to the first white settlers that set
foot here. Survey after survey suggests that Americans do not think of Immigration as a
good thing. The recent Immigration reform act only serves to advocate how they feel.
According to the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS), "Naturalization
applications jumped from 110,000 in the first quarter of 1994 to 180,000 for the same
quarter of this year"; and the numbers keep increasing (Legislative Update,
www.visalaw.com/95may/6may.html). A congressman by the name of Lamar Smith authored the
initiation of what later became part of the Immigration Reform Act of 1996
(www.house.gov/lamarsmith/pr-013098.htm). The bill, appropriately called the Smith Bill,
only staunches the advancement of immigrants into this country and simultaneously haults
the flow of creativity and new skill. Like all other Immigration reform acts, this bill
creates more barriers of entry for foreigners. The entire Immigration reform act of 1996
can be viewed at (www.visalaw.com/docs/2202.html). In conclusion, minorities, women,
elderly workers, people with disabilities and foreign workers are all groups that have
been excluded from the workplace in the past. Some Federal legislations acknowledge this
history and are making substantial effort to assimilate all people regardless of
difference. Yet there is still much work to be done and it is only through collective
effort that we can acknowledge the disadvantaged past and disadvantaged present of
certain groups of people. Embracing Diversity must truly be embraced as our living spaces
and working spaces become ever more unified. 
Bibliography
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