1. a Identify and describe the specific issues Maalick encountered in the workplace.
The co-workers of DeMur (Maalick) including Jenkins were asking about the pamphlets he was reading and this is the basis of the issues he was encountering at the workplace. Jenkins even went to the extent of asking DeMur (Maalick) the reason as to why he wanted a time off work yet they were very busy. Jenkins inquired from DeMur more about the authenticity of the religion not putting into consideration the fact that before DeMur accepted the job offer, he had decided to become a member of the Church of International Spirituality. It was his decision to join the church and this was what prompted him to move. However, people would not give him the opportunity to choose his religion of choice. Why you would ask. Is it because he is an American with African lineage?
Many questions are raised with regard to how African religion is viewed. Just a day after his interview Jenkins invited DeMur to attend his church. To Jenkins, it was a way of showing him the church to attend, meet people and get acquainted with other city dwellers. Jenkins also emphasized the fact that many of the facility employees attended the same church. It was a polite way of telling DeMur that this was the church of choice. Later in the evening, he was invited to have a casual dinner with Jenkins’ family. The casual dinner consisted of church members and a few other community members. This was a pleasant affair that gave DeMur a chance to exchange contacts with other people and also received pledges, if he happened to relocate.
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Since he joined the Internationalists Church near the Chenworth, Kansas, he read materials on his work breaks and lunch period. This facilitated further questioning from his fellow workers. Since the church offered its members spiritual educational classes, this meant that DeMur had to join the class in order to commit to the church’s strict restrictions. They were related to diet, appearance, worship methods, and other areas where conduct of the church members was under scrutiny. The final step of the class required the members to attend a five-day intensive spiritual preparation and confirmation process. Therefore, DeMur decided to request for a week of vacation to facilitate his attendance of the final process for his church membership journey. Several of his employees ridiculed his religion and referred to DeMur’s church members as voodooists and partakers of sorcery and witchcraft. Despite all this, DeMur left for the ceremony and later after the process he was subjected to change his name. He was given the name Maalick.
It was here that he faced every kind of discrimination from his co-workers and after a period of time, they started leaving notes of black cats and voodoo materials on his desk. It was a way of mocking his religion. They went further and decorated his office with dolls that was pierced with needles, containers of incense and witch hats. They even went further to mock his African culture by placing an African picture on the wall with strange symbols and letterings.
b. Do the actions of other workers at Treton represent discrimination and harassment? What type of discrimination and harassment? Be specific.
The action(s) of Treton workers does represent discrimination and harassment. This is true because as per their policy, which was revised in 2007, prohibits against employee discrimination. This could be on the basis of their religion, race, sex/gender (including pregnancy), marital or veteran status, color, national origin, disability, and age. By discrimination, one is making distinctions. Basically, it is to alienate an individual due to their differences. Harassment, on the other hand, is an unwelcomed physical conduct or verbal words, which threaten another person. These unsolicited type of annoying is prohibited by law. Based on the issues presented above, it is safe to say that Maalick was discriminated against due to his religious beliefs. This resulted in his co-workers harassing him by acts such as decorating his office among other improper behavior. As such, both discrimination and harassment were present.
c. What elements of law are important for Treton to consider?
From the accounts presented, it is evident that Treton needs to consider certain elements of law like the Civil Rights act of 1964, Title VII. This act requires that all employers reasonably accommodate their employee’s religious practices, whether current or prospective employee. Not unless by doing so then an undue hardship will be placed on the employer. Failure to which reasonable accommodations needs to be incorporated, which includes job reassignments, flexibility in scheduling, or voluntary substitutions. Moreover, the act prohibits any acts of discrimination and harassment in the workplace and covers employees from a broad spectrum. They include those from the private, public and local governments plus educational institutions that have more than fifteen employees. Jenkins was refusing to give Maalick his due right, but later gave it to him. Since Maalick defended his motive, the manager saw no need to cause the company undue hardship as it would have been considered as a religious discrimination. For Maalick, after his name change, his co-workers and even manager teased him the more about his religious choice. These situations resulted in Maalick conducting his operations under very hostile environments. The definition of discrimination clearly states that an individual should not be discriminated against on the grounds of religion, race, sex/gender, color, national origin, and continue to cover sex stereotyping and employees acts of sexual harassment. Hence, we are able to see clearly that religion is one of the factors Maalick was discriminated against in Treton.
2. a. Evaluate the actions of the HR director, Marta Ford, in response to Maalick’s situation.
Marta Ford’s action with regard to responding to Maalick’s situation portrays the weight awarded to his complaints covering religious beliefs. Ford goes to a point of telling Maalick not to worry about his co-workers and dismissed Maalick’s petition by proceeding to change his name in the company records. She further asserts and assures Maalick that the name change would be effected to ensure that he enjoys a pleasant working environment. It was at this point in time that Ford should have investigated further on Maalick’s pleas, instead of dismissing him. She should also have suggested to Maalick to report any other form of discrimination that arises and should have opened a file noting all his grievances. It was only after the discrimination took a drastic turn that Ford managed to pay attention and resorted to sending emails to all department heads detailing the acts of discrimination and harassment.
An opening in the company came and Maalick was interested as he saw it as an avenue to grow his expertise. The interviewer was Jenkins who was aware of Maalick’s qualifications for the operations manager job, but opted to give it to someone else. Upon inquiring, the successful candidate’s history showed that he apparently came from the same church as Jenkins. Later on, Marta Ford decided to involve Judith Dixon, Treton’s EEO VP and immediately, the complaints resulted in the turning of tables. All these accounts show how Ford was reluctant to handle the situation from the onset and she contributed to its escalation.
b. What could she have done to prevent the situation and what more could she do to ensure that this type of situation would not occur in the future?
Ford should have taken the matter seriously from the time Maalick first introduced the issue. From there, she should have imposed stricter policies against discrimination and harassment. Then and only then, the narrative would have been different. The other issue that was worth investigating was Jenkins’ motives when he invited Maalick over for dinner even before he was offered the job. One would conclude that Ford was not appreciated by her fellow workers and this resulted in her negating her duties towards promoting equality in the workplace. Had she taken up her duties and responsibilities as HR personnel, then the situation would have been managed. Moreover, the aspect of diversity in the workforce was another area of concern because Jenkins was only after passing the mantle to his church members, only. Had Ford considered inviting Dixon to the situation, the story would have been different. Better policies would have been implemented touching on cultural differences and acceptances at the plant. All this would have been achieved through educating Treton employees at the Kansas facility of the importance of working together as a unit. Moreover, Treton’s employees would have been educated on the good and bad about discriminating against a fellow worker or harassing them due to their race, religion, nationality, and others.
3. How would you characterize Clive Jenkins' behavior and response to this situation?
Clive Jenkins’ character was not good because it did not reflect Treton’s image. Maalick showed Jenkins the situation at his office, but all he could say was that Maalick had admirers. His laughter made the situation worse and showed his ill motives and intention with regard to Maalick’s position in the Kansas facility. Jenkins’ decision to hire the other candidate also portrays that he is one man who is easily swayed to aspects of religion. His response failed him terribly and even subjected his actions to further scrutiny because he was even the one who first invited Maalick to his church before he was given the offer by Treton, Kansas facility. Jenkins also mentions to Maalick on several occasions that many of the employees at the office attended the same church. It is such behavior that shows how small-minded one can be when it comes to aspects of religion.
4. What resolution to this situation might Judith Dixon suggest?
Considering Judith Dixon’s stand on promoting Treton’s policy, she would first inquire from all parties involved in the situation. The aim of carrying out the inquiry is to have all parties state their side of the story. After that, she should re-check the company’s policies and see where the fault lies because the act is clear on issues relating discrimination and harassment. Dixon should also look at strict forms of handling Jenkins because he incited his fellow workers to behave in a manner that discriminated against Maalick’s religion and race. This is because law suit can be filled by complainants leading to them losing millions of dollars. The other issue that may land Treton into trouble would be if Maalick decides to forward his complaint of not getting the manager’s job position yet he has all the qualifications. If it can be established that Jenkins’ decision are against hiring Maalick due to his religion, then something needs to be done immediately.
5. a. What are the broader implications of this situation for Treton?
For Treton Kansas facility, a problem looms in their plant and this has broader implications for future company operations. As such, it is necessary for the management to look into their culture and identify where the acts of discrimination and harassment are coming from and why. By so doing, they will be looking at a long-term solution because the problem seems to be recurring. It should be identified and dealt with immediately before looking at other issues because such acts can ruin the company’s reputation in a flash of a second. If Maalick decides to involve higher authority, the law would demand for his compensation and this would mean that the company would be losing. It is paramount for the human resource personnel to engage their employees more and get to know their problems on a daily basis.
b. What type of organizational review might Dixon initiate or suggest from a corporate perspective?
From a corporate perspective, Dixon might initiate a review that looks further into the employees’ interaction with each other in the company. The problem lies in their circle and should be identified in order for the company to move forward with its operations. Therefore, the initiate will be more like a survey to ascertain why employees are discriminating against their fellow worker. Moreover, it will also help analyse why they are harassing their fellow worker and yet they all have a common goal of improving their financial status by meeting the mission and vision of their company. Employees need to understand that they need to work together and not against each other.
