Race, gender, and sexism are inherent issues in the workplace whereby victims experience some form of discrimination as a result of their sex or racial background. The human resources departments are tasked with the mandate of ensuring that employees are treated fairly when discharging their duties. They are also required to formulate occupational laws that are consistent with the statutory workplace provisions to address any cases of gender racial and racism. For employees to be productive, there is a need to provide a friendly platform that is founded on mutuality, respect, and dignity.
I interviewed Mr. Woodley Clark, a long serving human resource manager at a soft-drinks processing firm in New York. I prepared the following question for Mr. Clark.
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In what ways are gender, sexism, and racial stratification perpetrated in the workplace?
Who is more susceptible to gender and sex discrimination?
What is the role of the human resource management in addressing gender, racial and sexism in the workplace?
Does the internal culture contribute towards occupational stratification based on gender, race, and sex stratification?
Are there federal laws that regulate these forms of occupational stratification?
According to Clark, there are numerous ways in which perpetrator of gender and racial discrimination can use to intimidate their victims. Although the victims might be aware of such moves, some of the actions go unnoticed, and they are taken as part of the internal culture. Clark indicates that racial stratification mostly takes place through verbal expressions and being denied equal opportunities to some individuals(Bruckmüller et al., 2013). The employees who may perceive themselves as being from a superior race may make insulting or intimidating remarks which result in uneasiness in the workplace. Also, the management may also support such practices by denying individuals employment or promotion by using gender or race as the primary disqualifying factor.
Gender discrimination is prevalent particularly in the publicized court cases of employees. Clark noted that sexism and gender tend to be intertwined. Both men and women may face this form of discrimination by having their gender are a consideration when making an important decision in their occupations. According to Jeffrey et al. (2015), they may be denied leadership position, or they may fail to be productive for being intimidated by their colleagues of the opposite gender. However, research indicates that more women than men are victims of gender discrimination and sexism whereby they are thought to be weaker and less productive. Research also suggests that some roles are believed to be traditionally feminine. For instance, men may be denied an opportunity to work as secretaries because the position has been regarded as fit for women. Such forms of sexism tend to go unnoticed in the workplace.
The human resource managers play a crucial role in shaping the occupational behaviors of employees towards each other. In addition to ensuring that the statutory laws are followed, they develop internal best practices for the operators to minimize the number of instances that target the victims. They also advise the management on hiring and promotions to ensure that the factors considered are not subjective.
From the interview, it was clear that the organizational culture plays a critical role in the position that a company assumes regarding gender and racial fairness. Employees who are oriented to an objective approach tend to be professional when discussing various subject matters and they desist from various forms of subjective discrimination. According to Jitendra et al. (2013), the internal culture is shaped by the management through the values it orients to employees. The composition of the workplace is also imperious in shaping a culture based on fairness. This is achieved through the hiring process whereby the management targets individuals from different background and includes both gender based on their qualifications.
Various federal laws protect individuals from discrimination in the work place. Title VII of the Civil Rights Act which was enacted in 1964 prohibits employers from profiling individuals based on their color, race, religion, or sex(Player, 2013). Also, the Equal Pay Act of 1963 provides for the equal pay for all individuals working in a similar position in the workplace regardless of their gender or racial background. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 holds the management liable for compensating individuals who have been discriminated in the workplace(Player, 2013). Human resource managers ensure that companies are acquiescent with these laws to provide a fair platform for individuals to offer their services.
Conclusively, discrimination by sex, gender, and race are not infrequent in workplaces particularly due to a weak internal culture and inability of the management to provide internal best practices. These subjective references may be used to deny individuals positions and promotions. The different federal laws that prohibit against all forms of discrimination have been instrumental in protecting minorities in workplaces. However, s Clark notes, since a significant number of the cases go unreported, the statutory requirements may not be adequate without the proper will of the management and the establishment of model internal practices with an objective to create a nondiscriminatory workplace.
References
Bruckmüller, S., Ryan, M. K., Haslam, S. A., & Peters, K. (2013). Ceilings, Cliffs, and Labyrinths: Exploring Metaphors for workplace Gender Discrimination. The SAGE handbook of gender and psychology , 450.
Jeffrey, H. L., Beswick, E., & Meade, J. (2015). Learning and unlearning sexism in the workplace: Two important barriers prevent a more inclusive environment. Human Resource Management International Digest , 23 (5), 18-20.
Jitendra, M., Heather, S., & Kevin, B. (2013). Discrimination in the Workplace. Advances In Management .
Player, M. (2013). Federal Law of Employment Discrimination in a Nutshell, 7th . West Academic.
