Introduction
Social scientists find quite some distinction between the words gender and sex (Mason, 2011). They understand sex as a biological meaning to the physical differences that distinguish the males and the females. Gender, however, has more of a socio-cultural meaning that distinguishes the two sexes.
These differences include those of behaviour, attitudes and customary duties the women and the men are supposed to explicit. There are some expressions that emphasize the principle that gender engages a procedure of social construct. This has been seen in the way gender has been used to explain behaviour in the organizational setting (Adkins, 1995).
Problem analysis and justification
Many women do not have the understanding about their rights and this has been increasingly recognized as a hindrance to their use of the laws of the nation and the international standards where their rights are enshrined. For a long time, women have been discriminated from obtaining top jobs in the political or corporate world (Berrett, 1980).
This has changed considerably overtime and now many managerial positions are being headed by the woman and effectively for that matter (Knights and Davidson, 2001). In many parts of the world, however, many women still find themselves in a more vulnerable position than the men.
Women are still underrepresented in senior positions in many organizations and those positions that involve the decision making process. It is, therefore, high time that the women realized and fought for their rights. It is therefore the duty of the government and policy makers to formulate favourable policies and standards that will encourage equality within firms and organisations. The women are not the only ones vulnerable to this kind of discrimination, but so do people of colour and the disabled.
Managing workplace diversity
Since time immemorial, females have been exempted from holding some leadership positions. Leadership positions in organizations like those in government, education and other key sectors have normally been left for men. This was the case since it was assumed that males were in a better position to take these positions than the females (Dex, 1988). This assumption was rarely questioned just until recently.
This assumption, however, has received a lot of criticism from the women and this has led to the increasing in number of the females who are taking leadership positions. This has led to the election of females for Prime Minister Positions such as the case in Britain and other countries. Some have been placed in managerial positions unlike in the past when this was not expected. Women have also been seen to be more educated and this is shown by the master’s degree that they have attained (Marshall, 2004).
In business, the women have been seen to be occupying senior management positions. The idea that leadership belongs to men has led to some serious scrutiny by group of researchers. In the early years of the 1970s in United States, women started looking for ways to gain access to the managerial positions (Evetts, 2000). It has been argued that there is not so much difference in the ability of women and men to do the same job, especially when they have both been recommended for the job after attaining the qualifications.
Through the history of man, women have not been associated with the leadership roles outside the family, in corporate organizations or those areas that influence the society greatly. This selfish regard for women could have been as a result of the early childhood life which shaped them into submissive, passive and other qualities of cultures that are now referred to as being feminine.
Furthermore, studies that have been conducted support this idea by stating that school students, both girls and boys, that have similar career aspirations receive different approaches from their parents, boys being encouraged more to pursue their goals.
Some of the Human Resource practices that try to address this assumption, have tried to make equal considerations for both men and women at the job market. It has, however, been noted that the human resource management policies and practices are likely to cause discrimination on women, discriminate people of colour or those of disabilities (Morgan, 1986).
This is not supposed to be the case. When such discrimination cases occur unintentionally, it would be empirical that correction measures be taken. Such occasions of systemic, unintentional discriminations are very hard to detect and, therefore, it remains the major barrier to equity in opportunities during employment. This reasons call for the frequent review of the human resource policies and practices to offer corrective mechanisms when such cases of discrimination occurs.
Today, women have been regarded as important assets in the economy of the country since they have been of great influence to the business and the political arena (Jonsen and Matznevski, 2011). Before, women were not even allowed to engage in the voting process but in 1971, women in Switzerland were involved in the voting exercise for the first time. A few decades later, women are making up the majority of the voters. This shows some kind of transition to the way people regarded the women and how they are appreciated now.
In 2010, some reports show that women took over 49 percent of jobs in the United States and 50 percent of management jobs. These figures indicated that there were more women in the finance management sector, human resource sector and many other managerial positions. This indicate that there is a significant progress in the gender equality issue but this has not been the case for many other European countries which have not attained the levels that are seen in the United States.
Some employment programs and policies have tried to address the gender issues and have had positive impacts. Some policies and employment practices require the employer to investigate whether the women have been given equal opportunity in the recruitment and selection exercise. This requires the employer to consider some of the things such as the number of women and men that applied for the available positions.
The organization also needs to consider what proportion of the applicants to be short-listed will be women or men. After the short-listing process, the number of men and women to be interviewed would be considered and the subsequent appointment be done in such a way as to show some equity considerations. After the recruitment and selection exercise, it would also be important for the management to do a survey on the staff to get their perceptions and thoughts about the recruitment exercise.
Some other requirements that the organizations should consider when looking for a suitable candidate to fill a certain position is to reflect real requirements of the job on the job profile instead of describing the qualities of the person who previously filled that position. The job profiles should also be written in a way that encourages both parties (males and females) to participate in application for the position. This can be done by avoiding the acronyms that may seem rather exclusive (Crompton and Foulter, 1998).
When the employment programs and policies address the gender issue then there would be a positive impact in terms of creating diversity in the employment sector.
When there is diversity, then this prevents discrimination and promotes inclusiveness. It has been proven that the management of a diverse work force can increase staff productivity and retention. It can aid the organization in responding appropriately to the ever-increasing diversity of the customers.
It would also improve the relationship of the organization with the community. This diversity of the organization’s workforce increases the ability of the organization to adapt with change and expand in creativity. Proper management of the diversified workforce increases its productivity and manoeuvrability in an ever-complex environment.
Scientists have identified six barriers to organizations that are likely to reduce the success of achieving a diverse workforce in an organization (Kahn-Hut, et al., 1994). The first is discrimination and prejudice. Differences in sex and ethnicity are at times regarded as weaknesses by some group of people and this may limit the opportunities given to women and coloured people.
This is because they are stereotyped as less effective and less intelligent and, therefore, not much is expected from them. Other barriers include negative attitudes towards different people. This is evidenced when people of different origins enter a work place containing people from same origin or backgrounds. The result will be some form of disassociation with the new lot due to unfamiliarity.
Other barriers include biasing, stereotyping and racism. Research has identified that some minority groups such as African Americans and Asians have been experiencing racism in the workplaces and have been denied the opportunities in the workforce. This means that race has been used as a tool for excluding some people. This has been the case even for the very talented and capable individuals who miss out on opportunities solely on the fact that they are of a different race.
Alternative solutions
In order for an organization or a company to manage diversity responsibly, it needs to craft appropriate policies that make employees understand their position in the work place and serve as a touchstone in the management process (Kanter, 1976). Equity and diversity policy should be adopted to guide the recruitment and selection process. These policies should acknowledge and set a level ground for all applicants, male and female.
Disabilities and ill health should be considered in the diversity policy so that organizations appreciate the fact that workers have different abilities and physical disabilities may not negatively impact their performance in the workplace. Only a few adjustments here and there could be made to accommodate the disabled in the company (Cockburn, 1985).
These changes could be on the facilities in the workplace and should ensure that they meet the needs of a diverse workforce. For example, ramps and lifts could be included in the organization’s facilities to allow access for wheelchairs that would give the disabled an opportunity to exercise their rights in participating in nation building (Cockburn, 1991).
Conclusion and recommendations
Women and other underrepresented diverse groups such as the disabled have been discriminated for a long time in the workplaces but this has been subject to change in the more recent years and with this trend, there is likelihood that these issues of inequality in the workplace will be outdated.
Having been incorporated in the national law, these issues are just a step away from being outdated since the only thing that remains is for its implementation (Evetts, 1996). Women’s opportunities to access the organizational setup have increased incredibly as many believers of equity have implemented the Human resource initiatives. Those who advocate for equal opportunities for women in the workforce presume that the company is lacking something vital-good managers (Silverstone and Ward, 2008).
To combat this issue of inequality in the workplace, human resource initiatives should strived to ensure that a huge pool of the job candidates target women and this would be made possible using campaign strategies that do not necessarily have to change the context of the campaign.
This should also ensure that there are a certain number of women in the high positions within the organization or company (Shakeshaft, 1987). As for the disabled and other underrepresented groups, human resource personnel and other policy makers should also ensure that a certain proportion of the workforce should constitute of the disabled. This is because there are many institutions that train the disabled to be professionals. Their knowledge should, therefore, be harnessed and used for nation building.
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