Advantages of a Diverse Workforce

 

It's time for businesses to realize how crucial diversity and inclusion are good in recruiting procedures. But what are such advantages if the company has never genuinely prioritized equality and diversity.

Here are some urgent issues related to workplace diversity. What prevents more women from wanting to work in fields where men predominate.

·         Biases and stereotypes

This is possibly the worst offenders and the hardest to get rid of. In the UK, entrenched gender biases still exist in the workplace. Nearly 50% of workers claim that they still think that certain professions are solely held by men or women (HR Magazine). 5% of women indicate that they did not apply for a certain position out of fear of being treated unfairly due to gender (Alsico, n.d).

·         Coworker’s lack of respect and language

According to the bias that women lack the same military leadership skills as males, the BBC found that in a study of military performance evaluations, women were rated less favorably than men. Women were negatively characterized by phrases like "temperamental" and "frivolous," but men were negatively characterized by words like "irresponsible." In addition to being hurtful to the individual, this kind of language frequently serves to support outdated and inaccurate gender stereotypes.

·         Gender wage disparity

The Office for National Statistics has discovered that there is still a significant pay gap between genders who are 40 years of age and older and those who are under 40. The Institute for Fiscal Studies also found that a 25-year-old male graduate makes 5% more money annually than a female graduate with the same education. This statistic can indicate why women choose not to work in fields where men predominate. For performing the same task at the same level of ability as their male counterparts, women are prone to feel devalued (Aghazadeh, 2004).

The advantages that a diverse workforce offers companies as below.

·         Organizations can better comprehend the target audience.

Lack of diversity can have a variety of effects on customers and the results of the business. For instance, hair companies might provide items for hairstyle despite not fully realizing the demands of that particular hair type. Alternately, accessibility guidelines across various industries may consider mental impairments but not physical ones. When people from different backgrounds get together, they can contribute ideas that a more homogeneous group might not take into account. Recent political developments in the USA have taught that when their voices are not heard, choices are taken without taking their demands into account. This holds true for companies, workers, and clients as well. With an expanded team, an IT consultancy company or UK call center would have a higher chance of luring clients and providing superior customer care (Hengen Fox, 2020).

·         Securing and keeping the best talent

In the UK, males and white people still make up the majority of boards and senior management teams. Diversity grows as we move down the ranks, but many businesses still have oceans of identical faces. While research indicates that 40% of women with engineering degrees will leave their jobs due to "unwelcoming social barriers," which include being viewed as incompetent, being sexualized, and being excluded from social events, predominately white businesses may find it difficult to recruit BAME (black, asian and minority ethnic) workers (Zakaria, Amelinckx and Wilemon, 2004).

For persons who have disabilities that are both apparent and invisible, inclusive measures are crucial. Those who require mobility aids may need ramps and lifts to enter specific areas of our structures, but what about individuals who suffer from arthritis or persistent pain. By taking into account the demands of employees from varied backgrounds, the company will demonstrate its commitment to equality and diversity and will be able to recruit and keep a lot more talent (Moore, 2004).

·         Increased worker happiness

Employees are more likely to feel included and at home when they are around and led by individuals who are like them. When straight white men predominate a corporation, it can occasionally foster a "laddish" culture that excludes women, LGBTQIA+ individuals, and persons of other racial and ethnic backgrounds. Businesses already get a lot from a contented workforce, but it also has a lot of additional advantages. Businesses with a broad group of content employees have lower turnover rates, higher productivity levels, and sometimes even higher profits. Being varied has benefits. (Hengen Fox, 2020).

List of References

Aghazadeh, S. (2004). Managing workforce diversity as an essential resource for improving organizational performance. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 53(6), pp.521–531. [online] Available at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17410400410556183/full/html [Accessed on 18 August 2022]

Alsico. (n.d.). Male Dominated Industries: Breaking the Gender Imbalance. [online] Available at: https://www.alsico.co.uk/male-dominated-industries-breaking-the-gender-imbalance [Accessed on 17 August 2022]

Hengen Fox, N. (2020). More than a Slogan: Or, how we built a Social Justice Program that made our campus more Just. Radical Teacher, 116, pp.65–75. [online] Available at: https://radicalteacher.library.pitt.edu/ojs/radicalteacher/article/view/714. [Accessed on 17 August 2022]

List of References

Aghazadeh, S. (2004). Managing workforce diversity as an essential resource for improving organizational performance. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 53(6), pp.521–531. [online] Available at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17410400410556183/full/html [Accessed on 18 August 2022]

Alsico. (n.d.). Male Dominated Industries: Breaking the Gender Imbalance. [online] Available at: https://www.alsico.co.uk/male-dominated-industries-breaking-the-gender-imbalance [Accessed on 17 August 2022]

Hengen Fox, N. (2020). More than a Slogan: Or, how we built a Social Justice Program that made our campus more Just. Radical Teacher, 116, pp.65–75. [online] Available at: https://radicalteacher.library.pitt.edu/ojs/radicalteacher/article/view/714. [Accessed on 17 August 2022]

Moore, B. (2004). HR managers, SHRM and the Australian metals mining sector: Embracing the unitarist vision. Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources, 42(3), pp.274–300. [online] Available at:  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1038411104048169  [Accessed on 17 August 2022]

Zakaria, N., Amelinckx, A. and Wilemon, D. (2004). Working Together Apart? Building a Knowledge-Sharing Culture for Global Virtual Teams. Creativity and Innovation Management, 13(1), pp.15–29. [online] Available at: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-8691.2004.00290.x

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