Managing Diversity

This part of Human Resource Management discusses the subject of equal opportunity in the workplace. We consider the prevalence of discrimination on the grounds of gender, race, religion, disability and age and discuss the use of anti-discriminatory legislation. Also we evaluate the effectiveness of proactive policies and initiatives aimed at the management of diversity within organizations.

The chapters in part 6 address questions such as:

* Why should we encourage diversity in human resources?

* What is the purpose of anti-discriminatory legislation and why have some countries adopted different approaches?

* Why do people from certain backgrounds figure so prominently at the upper levels of virtually all professions?

* What is the empirical evidence for various types of discrimination?

* Is there any evidence for the effectiveness of legislation or management of diversity initiatives?

We begin Chapter 16 by placing the topic in its environmental context, examining the economic, cultural and ethical justifications for equality of opportunity. Then we move on to consider how organizations can develop strategies to maximize the use of diverse kinds of employee. The remainder of the chapter examines discrimination in relation to sex and gender. Chapter 17 goes on examine other forms of diversity including race, disability and age discrimination.

Equality of Opportunity Race, disability and age