Chapter 11 Managing cultural diversity Lucy Taksa and Dimitria Groutis Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-1

Intercultural approaches Assimilation – one culture dominant over all others Multi-culturalism – no culture inferior to dominant culture Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-2

Multiculturalism Multiculturalism: gave ethnic communities the right to retain and cultivate their different cultures did not go beyond the realm of communication and cultural dissonance did not address discrimination on the grounds of difference. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-3

Legislation Anti-discrimination is designed to provide equal access for individuals and to address growing incidences of ethnic stereotyping and sexism. Equal employment opportunity encourages strategies to provide equal access to and equal opportunities for employment, and to recognise, manage and maximise benefits of diversity and improve the absorption of migrants. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-4

EEO and MD EEO and MD share critical ideals. They both: decry discrimination and extol virtues of inclusiveness rely on individual solution of systemic problems have similar focus on policy development, law and changes to regulatory practice assume valuing cultural difference enhances the management of such difference Both strategies share a homogenising orientation failing to appreciate not all cultural groups respond in the same ways to strategies designed to encourage inclusivity. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-5

Social capital Social capital: focuses attention on networks identifies ways in which cultural differences, language and communication skills, and group norms intersect in practice is an avenue for teasing out interconnections between the above phenomena and their influence on EEO and MD initiatives. Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-6

Diversity in the railway industry Despite 20 years of EEO, sexism and racism is widespread. Reasons: Concern about deficient English-language skills Diverse range of migrant workers Increased occupational health and safety concerns Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-7

Building equity at the railways Cultural awareness training (paid attendance) English classes Access to community support programs Resistance to all initiatives Group sanctions for those few attendees Explained by social capital concept – evidence of preference for informal networks based on individual ties Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity 11-8

Implications for MD While training remains the preferred approach for preventing sexual harassment, for preventing discrimination and promoting appreciation of diversity a shift in attention to structural issues is also required Requires diagnostic investigation of workplace culture Consult with employees from different cultural backgrounds Devise new structures of collaboration that reallocate organisational authority and ‘crack’ old informal power bases 11-9 Copyright  2010 McGraw-Hill Australia Pty Ltd PPTs to accompany Strachan, French and Burgess, Managing Diversity