The past, present and future
A perspective from Professor Dennis Nickson
Human resource research into diversity and
equality
ver the past 10 years there has been a degree of continuity in
HR issues with much of the debate being around the point
about whether diversity and equality is best addressed
through the business case, legislation or because it is ethically
and morally the right thing to do.
O
Of course, in reality, organizational approaches to diversity will encompass
elements of all of these aspects, although there is an increasing focus on the
business case in both academic research and policy documents.
One area that has emerged in recent years in terms of research is a greater
focus on whether bias is conscious and/or unconscious. Reflecting this point
there is also an increasing interest in behavioural sciences in a range of HR
decisions, including recruitment and selection. This agenda is being
championed by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
(CIPD) and seems set to significantly influence discussions and explore the
strengths
and
intuition
in
Therefore,
managers
weaknesses
of
decision-making.
when
will
be
recruiting,
increasingly
encouraged to draw on their
expertise more effectively and, at
“One area that has emerged in
recent years in terms of
research is a greater focus on
whether bias is conscious
and/or unconscious.”
the same time, avoid falling prey
to unconscious bias in particular.
I see that the future will bring more and more research which is seen
through the lens of “scientific” approaches to HR. Beyond this though
there remains enduring research questions about, for example, why there
are not more female CEOs, why the employment rate for people with
disabilities has fallen over the last 30 years or so, and why black and
minority ethnic (BME) workers are facing significant barriers to progression
in the workplace. Further to this there may also be scope to research areas
included in the Equality Act which are relatively under researched, such as
gender reassignment and marriage and civil partnership.
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Right now though there is a real need for employers
to consciously avoid negative stereotypes and it is
“I see that the future will bring
more and more research which
is seen through the lens of
“scientific” approaches to HR.”
suggested that employers often have a greater bias
against people with disabilities compared to other
groups in the workplace. Whilst there has been
some progress, not least by including disability as
part of anti-discrimination legislation in 1995, there
still remain many challenges. Recent research reported by the CIPD found
that 74 per cent of disabled candidates would not declare their disability for
fear of not getting a job. Relatedly, the same research also found that over
75 per cent of disabled candidates stated that the lack of disability
awareness was the most significant barrier in recruitment.
Surveys regularly report that diversity and inclusion seems to be a key
policy area for organizations, with the vast majority having a written policy
or set of guidelines. Often as well these policies/guidelines cover the
majority of protected characteristics included in the Equality Act 2010.
However, translating policy into actions can be challenging. Thus, whilst
there are clearly many examples of good practice, equally there remain a
number of challenges for organizations before they can truly say they are
practicing equality of opportunity for all.
One such example is the notion of
“reasonable
adjustments”,
which is crucial in highlighting
how
employers,
taking
into
account their size and resources,
should still be prepared to think
broadly
about
what
“Surveys regularly report that
diversity and inclusion seems to
be a key policy area for
organizations, with the vast
majority having a written policy
or set of guidelines.”
denotes
reasonable adjustments to enable
people with disabilities to access
employment.
Reasonable
adjustments
which
could
be
made
to
accommodate disability include:
•
Allowing absence for rehabilitation and treatment
•
Altering a person’s working hours
•
Acquiring or modifying equipment
•
Adjusting premises
•
Transferring a person to another job
•
Assigning a person to other work
•
Providing a reader and interpreter
•
Providing support workers
This PDF is © Emerald Group Publishing Limited and is provided for your own personal use only. It may not be used for resale,
reprinting, systematic distribution, emailing, web hosting, including institutional repositories/archives or for any other commercial
purpose without the permission of the publisher.
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•
Modifying instruction manuals.
Often these adjustments can be made at a
relatively low cost and it is important that
“Often these adjustments can
be made at a relatively low cost
and it is important that
employers work proactively with
employees with a disability to
address this issue.”
employers work proactively with employees with a
disability to address this issue. Indeed, in the
previously mentioned CIPD research nearly half of
the
disabled
candidates
seeking
employment
found a lack of support from employers in
considering reasonable adjustments.
About Professor Dennis Nickson
Dennis is Professor of Service Work and Employment in the Department of
Human Resource Management at the University of Strathclyde and an
Academic Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development
(Academic FCIPD).
Dennis’ primary research interests centre on work and employment issues
in interactive service work, with a particular concentration on the retail and
hospitality industries. He has featured as a “Professor to Watch” in the
Financial Times and contributes to policy change, one example includes
chairing a one-day conference on Welfare Reform in Scotland in 2011, with
speeches from the UK Minister for Welfare Reform and the Scottish
Government’s Minister for Skills and Lifelong Learning.
He is Editor-in-Chief of Emerald journal Employee Relations, a leading
international
academic
journal
focusing
on
the
importance
of
understanding employment and HR challenges and debates within the
context of contemporary national and international labour markets.
This PDF is © Emerald Group Publishing Limited and is provided for your own personal use only. It may not be used for resale,
reprinting, systematic distribution, emailing, web hosting, including institutional repositories/archives or for any other commercial
purpose without the permission of the publisher.
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