new
Maozedong
2 years ago
4
files (4)Ebooks-CengageeReader2.pdf
Ebooks-CengageeReader1.pdf
- 2024-11-3010.38.27.png
- Ebooks-CengageeReader3.pdf
Ebooks-CengageeReader2.pdf
Book Title: eTextbook: Organizational Communication: Approaches and Processes The Multicultural Organization
The Multicultural Organization Moving beyond the stereotyping and discrimination found in many of today’s
organizations is a difficult task. To illustrate this, Morrison and Von Glinow
(1990) have described three phases of workplace development in the area of
cultural and gender diversity by describing three stages of .
In the first stage—first-generation affirmative action—the organization is
concerned with meeting legally mandated requirements for gender and ethnic
diversity. These programs, typically associated with the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission (EEOC), are designed to remedy historical
discrimination and provide for increased representation of women and ethnic
minorities in the workplace. Unfortunately, “simply responding to legislative
mandates does not seem to automatically result in greater minority inclusion”
(Gilbert & Ivancevich, 2000, p. 93). Indeed, the focus on numbers and quotas in
these firms can lead to intergroup conflict, distrust, and hostility. In the second
stage of development, organizations reach second-generation affirmative action.
At this stage, the firm has met affirmative action goals in terms of numbers,
and the emphasis shifts to supporting female and minority employees. Finally,
a multicultural organization moves beyond the concept of support for minority
members to the institution of policies that deliberately capitalize on cultural
and gender diversity. As Gilbert and Ivancevich (2000) contend, “[R]ather than
simply making a commitment to valuing diversity, creating an atmosphere of
inclusion requires change on many fronts, including fairness, empowerment,
and openness”.
More than twenty years ago, Cox (1991) provided a detailed description of a
multicultural organization that is still helpful today. He identified six critical
dimensions: acculturation, structural integration, informal integration, cultural
affirmative action
224
bias, organizational identification, and intergroup conflict. These dimensions
are defined in Table 12.1.
Dimension Definition
1. Acculturation Modes by which two groups adapt to each
other and resolve cultural differences
2. Structural
integration
Cultural profiles of organization
members, including hiring, job placement,
and job status profiles
3. Informal integration Inclusion of minority-culture members in
informal networks and activities outside
of normal working hours
4. Cultural bias Prejudice and discrimination
5. Organizational
identification
Feelings of belonging, loyalty, and
commitment to the organization
6. Intergroup conflict Friction, tension, and power struggles
between cultural groups
From Cox, T. H. (1991). The multicultural organization. Academy of Management Executive, 5(2), 34–47. Reproduced with permission of the Academy of Management (New York).
Table 12.1 Dimensions for Describing a Multicultural Organization
According to Cox (1991), a multicultural organization is marked by the full
structural integration of women and people of color. Women and minorities—
and other co-cultural groups—are proportionally represented at all levels of an
organization and in all workgroups. A multicultural organization is also
marked by full informal integration. That is, co-cultural group members are not
excluded from social activities or from mentoring and other developmental
processes. A multicultural organization is also marked by an absence of
discrimination, low levels of intergroup conflict, and high levels of
organizational identification for all organizational members, regardless of
gender, ethnicity, culture, age, sexual orientation, or disability status.
It should be noted, however, that developing this kind of diversity does not
necessarily mean that members of the diverse organization will always agree
with each other. Hafen (2003), for example, talks about how the dominant
metaphor of pluralistic diversity involves having a wide range of voices singing
together in a single organizational chorus. However, Hafen believes that this
chorus might not always be harmonious, and she argues for “letting all voices
on and (arguably) off key, into the choir, without flinching at discordant notes,
without wishing that they would just be silent” (Hafen, 2003). In other words, a
diverse organization provides both opportunities and challenges, some of
which will be considered in the following sections.
225
Ebooks-CengageeReader1.pdf
Book Title: eTextbook: Organizational Communication: Approaches and Processes Women and Minorities in Today’s Organizations
Women and Minorities in Today’s Organizations As noted above, women and people of color are entering the workforce in
increasing numbers. But what are their experiences in the workplace? Are
these experiences similar to those of white males? The consistent answer to
this question is that the workplace experiences of women and people of color
are vastly different from that of white men (Allen, 2000; Gates, 2003).
Consider first the case of women. For decades, commentators have talked
about the phenomenon that has come to be known as the . As
Morrison and Von Glinow (1990) explain, “The glass ceiling is a concept
popularized in the 1980s to describe a barrier so subtle that it is transparent,
yet so strong that it prevents women and minorities from moving up in the
management hierarchy”. Heilman (1994) laid out the relevant statistics from
more than twenty years ago: “While women occupy 36% of the management
positions in the United States … less than 3% of the top executives in Fortune
500 companies are women”. Have things improved since then? Hardly. By 2014,
the percentage of women who were CEOs of Fortune 500 companies had only
risen to 4.8%, but at the beginning of 2016 had dropped back a bit to 4.2%
(Bellstrom, 2015).
Beyond the executive suite, the picture has improved slightly but remains
disheartening. President Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act in 1963. In the half
century since, women’s pay has moved from 59 cents for every dollar a man
earns to 77 cents. In 2009, the first bill President Obama signed during his
presidency was the Lilly Ledbetter fair pay act, making it easier for women to
sue for pay inequity. Thus, there has been progress, but it has been limited. The
glass ceiling
218
reasons for the gender pay gap can be attributed to a number of factors
including career choice, women going in and out of the workforce to care for
children and parents, and, sadly, straightforward discrimination. This podcast
describes how complex and stubborn a problem the gender pay gap is, decades
after it was first recognized as a problem.
Case in Point: Judging Women
On August 7, 2010, Elena Kagan was sworn in as associate justice of the
Supreme Court. This appointment can be seen as a movement toward
increased diversity, as now three out of nine Supreme Court justices are
women. However, Kagan’s nomination process also points to ways in
which women’s choices play a critical role in organizational experience
even in this most exclusive of workplaces.
Lisa Belkin makes this point by comparing the two most recent female
justices (Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor) with the first two women appointed
to the Supreme Court (Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg).
Belkin (2010) notes that while O’Connor and Ginsburg are both married
and mothers, Kagan and Sotomayor are both single and childless. This
could be coincidence, or it could point to ways in which women’s lives
have changed over the years. Belkin argues that O’Connor and Ginsburg
came of age at a time in which “not much was given to or expected of
women … which created a paradoxical freedom.” In contrast, Kagan and
Sotomayor are of a time in which a great deal more is expected of women.
“Expectation brings obligation, and Sotomayor and Kagan were of the
generation facing new tradeoffs. Pursue the career and sacrifice the
family. Have the family and ratchet back the career … There would be no
taking five years off to stay home with your children if you hoped for a
seat on the Supreme Court” (Belkin, 2010). Although this sample of four
Supreme Court justices is obviously not representative of all working
women, this comparison does point to continuing struggles for women in
the workplace. As Belkin concludes, “ [F]or men, having a family is an
asset when pursuing a demanding career. For women, it is still a
complication.”
The situation is even grimmer for people of color. A decade ago, the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission established “E-RACE” (Eradicating
Racism and Colorism from Employment) because “color discrimination in
employment seems to be on the rise” (“Why Do We Need E-Race?” 2007). For
example, studies found that black job applicants with lighter skin were more
likely to be hired than those with darker skin, even when identical
qualifications were presented (Cazares, 2007), and that although black men
were less likely to be discriminated against in jobs requiring technical skills,
such discrimination still existed in jobs that require more social skills (Kim &
Tamborini, 2006). Further, black men experienced greater levels of
unemployment in the recent recession than any other demographic group
(Cawthorne, 2009), and continuing issues with black unemployment may be
driven in part by differential access to relevant social networks (DeTomoso,
2012). Though it is difficult to track specific changes in workplace
discrimination over time, it is clear that the issue has not gone away. For
example, a recent poll found that 69% of blacks and 57% of Hispanics believe
that discrimination is a major problem (Vega, 2015). In sum, then, three aspects
defining the experience of women and minorities in today’s organizations are a
relatively greater difficulty in getting jobs, widespread pay inequity, and
challenges with representation in particular sectors and at upper levels of the
organizational hierarchy.
There are also other obstacles. We talked earlier about the glass ceiling that
hampers advancement for women. Additional buzzwords describe further
problems in the workplace. Several decades ago, Schwartz (1989) differentiated
between women on a career track and women on a , who were
assumed to want flexible work arrangements and family support in exchange
for fewer opportunities for advancement. In the early 2000s, the catchphrases
in this area shifted to emphasize the need for enhanced flexibility for women
as they choose to and of work (Conant, 2007) or as they take the
off-ramp from the workplace to have children and then take the on-ramp back
into a career several years later (McGinn, 2006). However, these transitions
aren’t always easy. For example, Warner (2013) reported that many women
who had “opted out” were having a difficult time finding the “on-ramp” back
219
mommy track
opt-in opt-out
into the workplace. Thus, women are now being advised to to career
and leadership opportunities (Sandberg, 2013). This article takes a tough love
approach the problem, advising women to “get over it” and then providing
some specific suggestions for how the reentry program can be made more
successful.
In sum, women and people of color do indeed have different organizational
experiences than white men. In the next few sections, we’ll explore those
differences further by considering the concepts of discrimination and
relational barriers in the organization and by looking at some of the
unexpected experiences brought on by gender diversity in the workplace.
lean in
- Strategies for Domestic Violence
- ENGLISH123
- Need by 2:45 today
- Wek 3 Peer Review
- Public admin
- Audit independents and professional scepticism
- Analyze This Thing: What Is a Good Item? Discussion
- The History of Security Timeline
- 11 question (100 words pre question answer)
- paper 5pages around 1500words about. In specfic respects, Contemportary Mexico is no longer recognizably Aztec Society, due to Mexico is changing from every aspects.
