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Workforce Diversity

Workforce diversity refers to differences among employees in characteristics such as age, gender, race, abilities, and orientation. Managing a diverse workforce requires recognizing these differences to encourage creativity, productivity, and avoid discrimination. Some advantages of diversity include improved problem-solving, talent attraction and retention, better customer service, and avoiding reputational damage. Key aspects of managing diversity are top management commitment, policy changes, support groups, training, and monitoring. Growing interest in diversity stems from factors like increased globalization, mergers, diverse workforces, and legal requirements.

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35 views

Workforce Diversity

Workforce diversity refers to differences among employees in characteristics such as age, gender, race, abilities, and orientation. Managing a diverse workforce requires recognizing these differences to encourage creativity, productivity, and avoid discrimination. Some advantages of diversity include improved problem-solving, talent attraction and retention, better customer service, and avoiding reputational damage. Key aspects of managing diversity are top management commitment, policy changes, support groups, training, and monitoring. Growing interest in diversity stems from factors like increased globalization, mergers, diverse workforces, and legal requirements.

Uploaded by

mayaverma123p
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WORKFORCE DIVERSITY

According to Moorhead and Griffin, “Workforce diversity is concerned with the similarities and
differences in such characteristics as age, gender, ethnic heritage, physical abilities and disabilities,
race and sexual orientation, among the employees of organizations.

The managers will be required to shift their approach from treating each group of workers alike to
recognizing differences among them and following such policies so as to encourage creativity,
improve productivity, reduce labour turnover and avoid any of discrimination.

ADVANTAGES OF WORKFORCE DIVERSITY

1. Organisation can solve conflicts from opposing viewpoints, if it has well managed diversity 
Organisation that promotes equal employment opportunity for diverse group that do better
at attracting and retaining talent from different backgrounds.
2. Business with diverse backgrounds can more effectively serve the customers. Such
employees interact with locals and are more careful about their expectations.
3. Companies can avoid damage to their corporate reputation.
4. The global marketplace today demands a workforce with language skills, cultural sensitivity
and awareness of national and other differences across the market in order to be successful.

MANAGEMENT OF DIVERSITY

1. Commitment of Top Management


2. Change of Employment policies
3. Creation of a support group
4. Diversity training Program
5. Diversity Monitoring Mechanism

REASONS FOR GROWING INTEREST IN DIVERSITY

 Growth of Service Economy


 Globalization of Markets
 Mergers and Strategic Alliances
 Increasing Role of Work Teams
 Changing Composition of Workforce
 Managing Labour Market
 Legal Requirement

EMPOWERMENT

a. Empowerment is any process that provides greater autonomy through the sharing of
relevant information and the provision of control over factors affecting job
performance.
b. The purpose of empowerment is to free the employees from rigorous control and
give them freedom to take responsibility for their own ideas and actions, to release
hidden talents which would otherwise remain inaccessible.
c. Empowerment offers a way of treating people with respect and dignity.
d. Empowerment has wider scope than delegation.

RATIONALE OF EMPOWERMENT

1. Increasing pace of change, turbulence of environment and changing expectations of


customers requires speedy and flexible approach
2. The impact of downsizing, delayering and decentralizing means that old methods of co-
ordination are no longer appropriate. Greater responsibility and authority should be given to
employees.
3. Organisations require cross-functional working and greater integration in their processes to
meet the customer needs.
4. Employees now have greater awareness and are more concerned with the satisfaction of
higher-level needs
5. Empowerment can provide opportunities to the employees at a lower level to develop their
competencies. It can provide source for managerial talent.

ADVANTAGES OF EMPOWERMENT for Organisation

a. Employees are values and encouraged to make personal contribution


b. It allows quick decision making and action by the employees
c. It creates a team of loyal and committed employees
d. Individuals are aware that what they are seeking, why they are seeking and it fits
into wider corporate goals
e. Organizational culture is likely to be co-operative and purposeful
f. Individuals tend to have willingness to take personal responsibility for their own
success, the success of team and the whole organization.
g. It provides a work environment that fosters opportunities for employees for
personal growth and development.

ADVANTAGES OF EMPOWERMENT for Employees

 Recognition of Potential
 Ensures Personal Growth
 Increased Confidence in Job
 Increased Motivation
 Innovative Decision Making

APPROACHES TO EFFECTIVE EMPOWERMENT


 Having shared vision and values
 Having trust in the employees
 Helping achieve job mastery
 Allowing discretion
 Providing successful role models
 Using social reinforcement
 Giving emotional support

BARRIERS TO EMPOWERMENT

 Lack of capability amongst the employees


 Unwillingness of superiors to delegate authority
 Static organizational culture
 Rigid controls

DOWNSIZING

 Downsizing means reducing the size of the organization in order to cut costs, hive off
unprofitable operations and improve operational efficiency.
 It involves organizational restructuring which results in decreasing the size of the
organization leading to a flat organization structure so as to respond more readily to the
pace of environmental changes.
 It has been adopted throughout the world to achieve operational economies and increase
efficiency to be able to survive in everchanging and uncertain environment.

CAUSES OF DOWNSIZING

1. Overstaffing due to faulty HR policy


2. Change in man-machine ratio due to technological changes
3. Jobs may be redesigned and employees redeployed to other positions to cut pay bill
4. The organization may start outsourcing some of its activities

ROLE OF HR MANAGER IN DOWNSIZING

1. Communication with Employees


2. Win the Support of Trade Unions
3. Taking Care of Uncertainties
4. Providing Training
5. Providing Outplacement Service

VOLUNTARY RETIREMENT SCHEME

1. Downsizing of workforce is generally done through VRS. Under this scheme, the organization
and its employees agree to voluntarily retire on payment of agreed compensation by the
employer.
2. It has been recognized as the ‘GOLDEN HANDSHAKE’ because of the benefits for both the
employees and the employers
3. The employees get handsome amount under the VRS package and the employers save
recurring fat wage bills in the long run.
4. It involves separation of employees based on mutual agreement between employee and
employer  Many companies have used VRS as downsizing strategy like SAIL, TISCO, Bajaj
Auto, Philips India, Hindustan Unilever Ltd.
REASONS FOR VRS

From Employer viewpoint

1. Restructuring of operations
2. Reduce labour cost
3. Get rid of surplus workforce
4. Get rid of inefficient employees causing constant decline in productivity
5. Hiring talented employees

From Employee Viewpoint

a. Inability of workers to perform duties due to bad health


b. Lack of satisfaction on the job and unhealthy work environment
c. Possibility of lay off in future
d. Undertaking a new career
e. Joining family business
f. For using benefits of retirement for meeting family expenses, starting new business

BENEFITS OF VRS

1. It is a more humane way of reducing surplus workforce.


2. It prevents resentment from the employees.
3. Trade unions also do not make objections.
4. It reduces the wage bill significantly over time even after paying huge amounts initially.

NEGATIVE OUTCOMES OF VRS

 Efficient employees may leave the firm


 It may increase the workload of existing employees
 It may create a sense of insecurity amongst the employees who have not opted for VRS

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