Chapter Seven
RESPECTING EMPLOYEE
DIVERSITY
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Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons
 Describe competitive advantages
Chapter 7
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Learning Objectives
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Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
of diversity
Explain the most common types
of workplace discrimination
Adopt best operational practices
for managing diversity
Successfully implement a
diversity initiative
Facilitate a variety of diversity
workshops
Four Dimensions of Diversity

Permanent Dimension—refers to physical
attributes or inclinations people are born with that
do not naturally change over time

Evolving Dimension—individuals can be
categorized according to evolving characteristics as
well as permanent ones
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Four Dimensions of Diversity

Personality Dimension—personality theorists and
researchers have reached a general consensus on a
“Big Five Personality Model” consisting of five
different personality aspects

Organizational Dimension—these defining
characteristics, which can be either unchanging or
evolving, include hierarchical status, work content,
department, and seniority
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Four Dimensions of Diversity
Insert Exhibit 7.1
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
History of Ethnic and Religious Diversity and
Discrimination
Population Diversity and Growth
 The transformation from an indigenous to a
nonindigenous population occurred through waves
of new immigrants seeking to improve their living
conditions, except for African Americans who arrived
prior to the Civil War through captivity and
enslavement
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
History of Ethnic and Religious Diversity and
Discrimination
 Each newly arriving immigrant group was met with
prejudice and fear from many among the existing
population
 The success of Italian and Spanish explorers
attracted explorers from England, the Netherlands,
and France
 Each European nationality ruthlessly competed
against one another for the best trading posts and
settlements
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
History of Ethnic and Religious Diversity and
Discrimination
 1845-49 three-quarters of a million poor Irish
immigrants arrived, fleeing the potato famine
 Irish immigrants were discriminated against not
only because of their nationality, but also their
religion: Roman Catholicism
 Chinese people began arriving in the mid-1800s,
drawn by the allure of getting rich from the
California Gold Rush and jobs building the
transcontinental railroad
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
History of Ethnic and Religious Diversity and
Discrimination
Discriminatory Employment Practices
 From 1776 until 1964 Caucasian males primarily
employed and serviced people from their own national
heritage and religious group
 Businesses began to diversify as they grew in size and
expanded their markets
 Nonetheless, managers tended to hire and promote those
employees who shared a common gender, race, ethnicity,
or religious heritage
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
History of Ethnic and Religious Diversity and
Discrimination
Illegal (Undocumented) Immigrants
 A contentious aspect of local, state, and national law is
the treatment of undocumented, or illegal, immigrants
 In 1921 the Emergency Quota Act placed limits on the
number of immigrants admitted into the United States
 Illegal immigrants account for 5.4 percent of the national
labor force
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Self-Categorization
 According to self-categorization theory, individuals
define themselves in relation to others based on a
“self-identity” or “social identity” factor and form
binding relationships with people who categorize
themselves similarly
 Individuals typically self-identify in terms of race,
ethnicity, or gender
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
 To discriminate means to make a distinction among
possible options
 Problems arise when dissimilar people are treated as
inferior or excluded
 Workplace segregation can reinforce prejudices
toward members of other groups
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Two Prominent Ethical Principles
 Fairness refers to making decisions
according to rules not based on personal
biases
 Respect for others refers to treating
everyone with dignity
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Insert Exhibit 7.2
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Gender Discrimination Issues
 Gender discrimination refers to treating an employee
differently because of his or her gender
 Stereotypes of women include being too physically weak,
too sensitive, or too polite to perform certain job tasks
 Men are stereotyped as being aggressive, less emotionally
vulnerable, and task-focused rather than relationshipfocused
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Gender Discrimination-Pay Inequality
 The Equal Pay Act of 1963 prohibits pay
discrimination based solely on gender considerations
 Previously, different wages for the same job tasks
were justified on the grounds that men were the
heads of households whereas women were earning
supplemental family income
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Gender Discrimination-Pregnancy
 In 1978, Congress passed the Pregnancy
Discrimination Act (PDA) to protect the civil rights
of pregnant women
 The PDA classified discrimination based on
pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical condition
as a form of gender discrimination
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
 The PDA requires that employers provide
appropriate job accommodations for pregnant
women that do not cause undue hardship to the
employer
 The PDA did not require that any specific amount of
leave be extended to childbearing women beyond
existing company policies
 Congress passed the Family and Medical Leave Act
(FMLA) of 1993 in part to address this issue
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
The FMLA ensures a total of 12 work weeks of unpaid
leave during any 12-month period, and the
continuation of health care and other fringe benefits
during this period for:
 The care of a newborn baby, a newly adopted child, or
a new foster child
 The care for an immediate family member (spouse,
child, or parent) with a serious health condition
 An employee’s serious health condition
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Gender Discrimination-Glass Ceiling
 Glass ceiling refers to situations in which the
hierarchical advancement of a qualified woman or
minority group member is prematurely stopped at a
lower level because of gender, racial, or ethnic
discrimination
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Gender Discrimination-Reverse Gender
Discrimination
 Reverse discrimination refers to discriminating
against a dominant or majority group member in
favor of a historically disadvantaged or minority
group member
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Race and Ethnicity Discrimination Issues
 Racial and ethnic discrimination refers to treating an
employee differently because of his or her race or
ethnicity
 The lack of daily social interactions among races and
ethnicities fosters stereotypes and prejudices
 Racial and ethnic minorities are much more likely to
perceive discrimination as a problem than the
Caucasians wielding managerial power
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Religious Discrimination Issues
 Religious discrimination refers to treating an employee
differently because of his or her religious beliefs
 Employers must provide religious accommodations that
are reasonable and do not cause a burden to the
employer
 Employers are also expected to provide flexible
scheduling for religious holidays and respect religious
clothing and grooming policies
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Age Discrimination Issues
 Age discrimination refers to treating an employee
differently because of his or her age
 The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA)
of 1967 prohibits dismissing, or not promoting,
anyone age 40 or older because the individual is
considered “too old” for the job
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Disability Discrimination Issues
 Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities
Act of 1990 (ADA) to prohibit discrimination
against a qualified worker with a disability who can
perform the job task with or without reasonable
accommodation
 The legislation defines a disability as “a physical or
mental impairment that substantially limits one or
more major life activities of such individual”
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Sexual Orientation Discrimination Issues
 Sexual orientation discrimination is not covered by Title
VII of the Civil Rights Act
 Nonetheless, more than 15 states and 150 municipalities
have passed laws prohibiting sexual orientation
discrimination
 Some companies prove “domestic partnership” benefits
to same-sex or different-sex couples, although they are
not required to do so by federal or state law
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Harassment
 Harassment is defined as “unwelcome conduct that
is based on race, color, religion, sex (including
pregnancy), national origin, age, disability or genetic
information”
 Harassment becomes unlawful when the conduct is
severe or pervasive enough to create a work
environment that a reasonable person would
consider intimidating, hostile, or abusive
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Dating, Sexual Harassment, and Hostile Work
Environment
 Dating is based on mutual consent; sexual harassment is
not
 Sexual harassment includes unwelcomed sexual
comments, jokes, leering, pictures, or physical touching
 When quid-pro-quo sexual harassment or a hostile
environment occurs, the employer must immediately
notify the accused person to stop the offensive behavior
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Workplace Discrimination
Retaliation for Discrimination Claims
 All EEO laws carry a stipulation that it is illegal to
take retaliatory adverse action against someone who
complains to an employer, manager, or law official
about a discrimination issue
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Competitive Advantages of Diversity Management
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
To attract and retain diverse customers
To attract and retain diverse employees
To achieve cost reductions
To enhance decision making, problem solving, and
creativity
To increase stakeholder goodwill
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Best Operational Practices for Managing Diversity
 Diversity officer/committee/office
 Recruiting and hiring
 Personnel policies
 Dispute resolution mechanisms
 Retention and promotions
 Performance appraisals
 Terminations and downsizing
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Implementing a Diversity Initiative
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Present a business case for the diversity initiative
Create a shared vision statement
Respectfully build from the past
Create a sense of urgency
Empower a change agent
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Implementing a Diversity Initiative (cont’d)
6. Gather political support
7. Craft an implementation plan
8. Develop enabling processes
9. Evaluate the progress
10. Reinforce the change
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Diversity Training
 Diversity necessitates expanding an employee’s
comfort level beyond his or her own race, ethnicity,
or gender
 Helping employees overcome their biases against
diverse people requires training
 Exhibit 7.3 highlights some common diversity
training problems that can arise from within, or
between, dominant and subordinate workplace
groups
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Diversity Training
Insert Exhibit 7.3
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Diversity Discussion Guidelines
 Many employees are not comfortable discussing diversity
issues
 Initial employee tension and resistance can be defused by
a warm-up activity in which participants agree on
discussion guidelines
 If the organization lacks discussion guidelines, have
participants independently develop a set of rules
governing how participants should treat one another
during the discussion
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics
Diversity Training Exercises
 Chapter Seven includes several examples of diversity
exercises that are informative, relevant, and useful
 These include activities that foster awareness,
explore what it is like being prejudged, and how
everyone is unique
Chapter 7: Collins, Business Ethics