Diversity in the Work Place Essay Example for Free

Diversity in the Work Place Essay Diversity in the work place has been a subject of contention for decades whether taken on the perspective of gender parity, in terms of race or considering factors that constitute age of the individuals at the work place. In addition, the contemporary world is changing so fast such that the factors that play role in sustainable social development in the society are generally changing. With organizations like the WLO (World Labor Organization) taking proactive steps towards ensuring equitable resource allocation at the work place for both men and women, it is a point of concern for anyone to consider the capability of women to perform the same task as do men and if they receive or should receive equal payment (Vardy et al 2008). The focal point of this paper is an in-depth scrutiny of whether women are capable of performing the same work as men and if at all they are equally paid for the same job done. In order for the paper to provide a clear view of this issue, it endeavors to analyze the values and judgments pertaining to the present human resource practices. By doing this, it will provide an insight focus on the future of these human resource practices in the work environment. Therefore the backbone of this discussion is the case of gender discrimination at the Home depot stores. Introduction Societal dynamics have put a level ground- or have endeavored to place a level ground- for both men and women to equally benefit from their achievement without discrimination. Nevertheless, the question of equal pay for equal work has persistently beleaguered the American place of work. Though federal and state laws proscribe varied pay rates based on sex, wide-ranging statistics indicate that the American woman has historically continued to receive less pay than the man. To some extent, this disparity comes about as a result of the fact that relatively more women are generally employed in fields like service sector work jobs which are traditionally less paying. On the same platform women’s rights organizations and union maintain that promotion of women employees to the executive positions on limited basis is a clear reflection of gender discrimination at the work place. Historically, professional and executive ranks in organizations have predominantly been occupied by men. Despite the fact that the latest trends show an increase in the number of women obtaining such posts, the proportion of women the population is bigger and therefore they still lag behind significantly (Conrad, 2007). Values, judgments, regarding present Human Resource practices It is worth noting that several legislative acts have been put forth to guide the present human resource practices at the work place. Similarly, these nondiscrimination laws have been intended to provide a guideline for employers to offer equal chances for women and men without discrimination. Despite these laws there is still more to be done as general trends show that there is still disparity and pay gaps. Other than these nondiscrimination laws, the central government and various states have implemented affirmative action laws since 1970s. These laws require employers should apply fairness and be just when recruiting employees and promoting. Though some business entities slowly embraced the laws they still remain to be among the most difficult issues Along with issues about a womans place in the work force, they continue to be some of the most complicated issues concerning American employers and workers (Swartz et al 2007). Gender and Sexual Orientation in the Workplace Women are playing a progressively more significant function in the workplace. Nonetheless with statistics showing that the gender disparity is still wide open, employers cannot afford to overlook gender-related matters and have to carry on with the endeavor to avert gender inequalities in the place of work. A number of legislations have been enacted to act as a guiding line for employers in the modern workplace. Thus the federal agencies have recognized the importance of making the workplace a friendly and fairly rewarding place to those who are employed there without discrimination. Among the regulations include the Equal Pay act, sex Discrimination Act and regulations like Employment Equality regulation (Vardy et al 2008). Case: Sex Discrimination Lawsuit against Wal-Mart Overview of Wal-Mart Wal-Mart Stores, Incorporation is an American public corporation that operates a chain of large, price cut department stores. It is the worlds biggest public corporation by returns. It is also the world largest retailer with over 7,200 stores with close to 975 discount stores. Wal-mart employs about 700,000 women and counts as the largest private sector employer of women in the United States. It is only unfortunate that these women employees have had to endure conditions of unequal pay and favoritism in advancement and assignments of tasks. These inequities happen at all levels of management in the organization starting from the worker who works on hourly basis up to the one at the senior management level (Swartz et al 2007). Current Lawsuit Wal-Mart Gender Discrimination Lawsuit Wal-Mart is presently confronted with the likelihood of compensating out billions of dollars in recompense for purportedly discriminating against the thousands of women workers. A group of courageous women came forth to claim for compensation for alleged discrimination at work. As a snapshot of the corporation, it has close to a million employees in the US and Canada. Among these employees, over 40% are female. The problem that arises is that of the 40% only and in fact less than 30% of the management positions are held by female employees. Values and Judgments Most organizations have taken a proactive stance towards creating an environment for equal opportunity devoid of gender discrimination. Globalization and the general paradigm shift that has made the idea of integration fast acceptable and worth embracing have also made it possible for organizations all over the globe to embrace the changes that call for equality at the place of work. In this manner therefore the modern organization is up on heels to create a climate of equal opportunity by coming up with models and frameworks that are specifically geared towards managing diversity. The problem that comes along this is that the contemporary working environment is heavily complicated and therefore a number of business entities, for fear of change or uncertain about the impact of change are reluctant to embrace such measures. Those embracing it are doing it at a lag pace. This arises from the complexity of the manner in which environmental issues, values, factors, and cognitions create diverse perceptions concerning fair treatment at the place of work. The group of women who advanced a case against Wal-Mart identified a number of malpractices in human resources management at the corporation. There are several tactics employed by Wal-Mart to d discriminate against women employees. These tactics are basically executed through methods ranging from pay disparities to denial of promotion (Vardy et al 2008) Unequal Pay The women decried the two pay scales used at Wal-Mart and identified it as a major hitch in human resources management practices. This practice shortchanges the women since they perform the same job and tasks just as men yet men workers are paid between five and fifteen percent more than women. On the same platform, further statistics indicate that even if the women were given a promotion into management this does not guarantee them any better as far as fair treatment is concerned. Though women at the corporation have higher ratings and longer seniority ratings on average as compared to their male counterparts, those who make it to the top management positions are still discriminated against as they receive an annual pay about $5,000 less than the man counterpart in the same position. Male management trainees receive an annual pay nearly $5,000 more than female counterparts. And the top executive positions are also not spared. Women employees holding top executive positions at Wal-Mart are exposed to discrimination. This is evident from the fact that the women employee who holds this position receives an average of about $279,800 on annual basis as compared to a male counterpart who receives more than three- quarters of this more. Methodical Denial of Advancement Despite the fact that women employees constitute more than 70% of the workforce in the corporation men dominate the ranks of management. Women only comprise less than 35% of managers and less than 20% of the managers. Lower paying jobs in the corporation are concentrated with women where they make the biggest percentage. Jobs like sales associates and cashiers are filled b y women in percentages than men. Wal-Mart is trapped in the Past Wal-Mart provides work for fewer women in administration in the present day than its competitors did in 1975. Twenty equivalent traders employed an average of 41. 6% women managers by then. Today, Wal-Mart provides employment for slightly over 30%. Today, Wal-Mart’s competitors have over 55% of management positions made up of women employees constitute (Christian et al 2006). Women encounter unreasonable barriers to promotion at Wal-Mart On average, a male employee takes about 2 years to be promoted to the rank of assistant manager, counted from the day of hire. The woman employee will be promoted to the same rank in about four years’ period. Impediments are created in the organization and hinder women from getting promotion as their male counterparts. For instance, one among the women who sued the corporations said that though she had worked for seven years at the company and managed to receive evaluations indicating â€Å"goes beyond expectations† was advised to commit herself in writing to working overnight in the stores for two years when she expressed a desire to be accorded a promotion. This was strange since the men employees were not required to undergo such process to be promoted. Key Success Factors for Women in Management positions Though women at work place have been discriminated in several ways, there are also several factors that influence women’s future career development in management. Campaigns have been staged world over by a number of organizations both governmental and non-governmental to promote education without discriminating against girls. This has made it possible for women to prosper in various management positions thus gaining representation in fields like science and other professional jobs. Women continue to excel in these areas just as men. A study was carried out in Turkey which explored the factors that play role in women’s career advancement. The study revealed that though women have a substantial representation in professional and scientific jobs, they are only represented by 4% in top management. The most significant factor that was identified as a major barrier to women’s career advancement is the cultural norms towards gender roles. Cultural norms that are bent and biased against women in the society extend into the field of management thus causing the same bias against women even in management of business entities (Conrad, 2007). Verdict In conclusion, the supreme court dealing with the issue of Wal-Mart discrimination against women is likely to suggest that the group of women be compensated by the corporation for the wrong done. The future of women performance and appraisal at the workplace looks bright since if several of such rulings are passed in favor of the wronged groups of women, other likely perpetrators of women discrimination will hold back. This will encourage the appreciation of the fact that the modern woman is capable of performing the same duty the man performs and the employing organization should find no trouble paying her for the task. Works Cited Christian, J. , Porter L. W. , and Moffitt G. â€Å"Workplace Diversity and Group Relations: An Overview Group Processes Intergroup Relations†, (2006). 9, (4). 459-466. Conrad, Alison M. (Ed) â€Å"Hand Book of workplace Diversity† 2007. Swartz L. Garden, Rowe A. , Digh P. and Bennett, M. â€Å"The Global Diversity: Supervision of an International Workforce† 2007 Vardy, F. J. J. and Morgan, J. â€Å"Diversity in the Workplace† 2008