Currently, sexual misconduct and aggravation are ostensibly becoming more widespread. Nonetheless, these deeds are being encouraged and covered up to defend certain personnel, most considered top management. These actions are ethically intolerable and entirely unethical. Uber, a renowned taxi-hailing app, experienced accusations of sexual harassment and lack of diversity in the workplace. Ms. Fowler, an employee at Uber, encountered sexual harassment from her manager. Despite reporting the case to the human resource department, the company failed to initiate proper actions against the manager. The paper highpoints Uber’s struggles with diversity and other occurrences of sexual transgression, along with the benefits and shortcomings corporations such as Uber experience regarding Affirmative Action Laws and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission conformity.
Employment Law
Employment Law covers the employer-employee association's privileges, obligations, and responsibilities- from salaries and workplace security to discernment and illegal dismissal. There are numerous Civil Rights Acts entrenched under the Employment Law. The precise Act applicable to Susan’s case is Title VII Civil Rights Act of 1964. This Act offers personnel the capability to function in an atmosphere free of discernment, aggression, coercion, and insult founded on gender, race, culture, and religious conviction. The manager’s sexual advances towards Susan infringe upon this Act and perceives the work atmosphere as intimidating.
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Type of Harassment
Ms. Fowler’s occurrence can be termed as sexual harassment. However, it also meets the precise standards of hostile work atmosphere harassment. Hostile work environment harassment is a form of harassment that transpires when an individual’s behavior at work forms an atmosphere that is sexual, making it challenging for an individual of a specific gender to execute mandates in that type of environment. The messages Susan received from her manager were sexual and therefore created an atmosphere that made it unpleasant and difficult for Ms. Fowler to work in.
Uber’s Actions
Uber attempted to restrict their liability of sexual harassment accusations by implementing a policy that necessitated these concerns be managed through forced arbitration. This binding intercession was an employment stipulation and also spread to clients utilizing the service. This strategy prevented personnel from suing the corporation or being part of a class action court case. The company likewise committed $3 million to back corporations that concentrate on representing females and individuals of color. Moreover, Uber implemented a college recruiting team to report to predominantly African American and Hispanic institutions to look for tech-savvy persons.
EEOC and Affirmative Action
The diversity report that Uber publicized on March 27, 2017, indicated that the tech company was unduly comprised of white males. It is apparent from the diversity report that Uber failed to attempt to employ, hire, or endorse marginalized groups and that Uber did not have an affirmative action strategy in place. The Four-Fifths Rule signifies that the selection level for any group should be 40% or more if a majority group is included. During the report’s release, just 15% of the individuals were persons of color, and 36% of the entire personnel comprised of women, while 50% are white and 85% are male. Not only did Uber contravene an EEOC law, but they also desecrated an affirmation action regulation as their employee diversity was relatively low.
Diversity Matter
Diversity is very significant because the universe is moving towards a period where cultures are beginning to cross each other. Furthermore, it creates a good reputation for the corporation as it portrays the element of inclusivity. Positive public opinion is vital as it enhances a sense of trust between the corporation and the public. For Uber, most users are diversified. Therefore, it is critical to portray inclusivity and care to guarantee increased use of the services. Moreover, this would allow the company to retain more qualified candidates offering numerous skills and talents, generating more income.
Benefits/Challenge of a Diverse Workforce
There are numerous profits to Uber possessing diversified personnel. One of the profits includes increasing creative thought and invention. Employing individuals from multiple cultures and backgrounds allow for the chance to acquire several diverse standpoints and concepts. There is also an increase in trust amongst the public. While there are profits to having diversified personnel, challenges also exist. One of the challenges in dispute. It may be challenging to get a diverse group of individuals to work cooperatively. Uber would similarly have to manage communication obstacles that may occur because of differing dialects, forms of communication, and inclinations.
Legal Provisions of Uber Case
The legal provisions covered in the Uber case study are linked to Fowler’s sexual harassment accusations, allowing other employee reports and humiliations, displaying that the corporation is susceptible to being prosecuted by personnel. The corporation should find ways of handling Susan Fowler’s case privately to prevent the corporation from experiencing reputational damage and monetary losses attributed to disrespect of diversity guidelines, discernment of marginalized groups, and additional sexual assertions from other personnel.
Conclusion
The Human resource department should integrate policies to tackle allegations of harassment and discrimination at the company. Failure by the human resource department played a vital role in developing a toxic working environment. The assertions warranted an investigation that entails questioning Sharon Fowler, the administrator, and other personnel within the department who might have encountered or witnessed the unfortunate behavior. Uber’s reactive reply and failure to dismiss the manager rather than proactive management of the case is the main reason Sharon Fowler felt duty-bound to make her harassment public and the failure at each level of the entity to safeguard her.
References
Reynolds, K. (2019). 13 benefits and challenges of cultural diversity in the workplace. Retrieved from https://www.hult.edu/blog/benefits-challenges-cultural-diversityworkplace/
Lussier, R. N., & Hendon, J.R. (2019). Human resource management: Functions, applications, and skill development (3rd ed.) [VitalSource Bookshelf version]. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Retrieved from https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781544320601
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (2020) Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. https://www.eeoc.gov/statutes/title-vii-civil-rights-act-1964
