A few days after the horrors of 9 / 11, my phone started ringing off the hook with calls from managers who have dealt with some outbursts against anyone with a name or a Middle Eastern background. In my capacity as a corporate employee relations manager for a large financial services companies, I realized that emotions were running high and anger was escalating.
Fortunately, because I worked for a large company, we had a training department with an experienced diversity trainer. With the help of trainers and a wide variety of disseminated a memo reminding employees of our policies regarding discrimination, we were able to lower the temperature.
editor of the newsletter boosted our efforts by publishing well written article of human resources administrative assistant, who was born in Afghanistan. No one is thinking about the pain experienced by the vast majority of Afghans and others from the Middle East origin, who were horrified by the acts of a few terrorists. In our administrative assistant's post, she wrote about the ill-conceived perceptions Americans have of Afghans and she enlightened readers with a big dose of reality. response of other employees was overwhelming and heartwarming. Employees are apologetic for their own prejudices, and although many of them do not know this woman personally, they apologized for the slights suffered through no fault of their own.
Everybody comes to work with the beliefs and value systems. input into the system is unlimited, it comes from our families, cultures, religions, life experiences, etc. If someone grows up believing that people with red hair have short tempers, May they be intimidated or afraid of redheads. The fact that people with red hair are as diverse in temperament as well as anyone else does not occur to them.
In the U.S., we have some federal and state laws and legal precedents that protect against discrimination based on race, sex, national origin, religion, and age, among other categories. But how do we translate these laws and legal precedents, written on paper, in daily practice in the workplace.
In a large company, inhouse training diversity of May will be available. If so, diversity training should be scheduled at least once a year. These sessions should not be disruptive in the workplace because they can be scheduled in regularly scheduled staff meeting. During the meeting may need to be extended to accommodate a variety of training, but as this is an annual event, this should not overly disrupt the plans of work.
In a small company, employers can outsource a variety of training. There are many great diversity trainers who can schedule a session at your workplace. It is important to be sure that the coach is experienced and has a good reputation among their community. This is one of those times when asking for references is required. Ask other customers not only what they thought of the trainer, but what the coach had no impact on clients' employees. We hope that you'll hear that new employees to maintain mutual respect and morale improved.
When I worked for the courts in Ventura County, California, we had one day of the year when everyone brought food representing their ethnicity. Each group, including judges, were assigned to category: salads, main dishes, desserts, etc. The tables are set and everyone had a chance to feast on culinary masterpieces from around the world. Employees are delighted to share recipes and stories about their culture and their families. Not many people would think the court as an uplifting place to work, but in Ventura, morale was high and the camaraderie was great. And much of that is due to encouraging diversity throughout the progressive court clerk and her staff.
When I worked as a corporate employee relations manager, I sometimes received calls about the issues of sexual orientation. Managers would ask you to tell when someone has made derisive comments about gay and lesbian employees. While in some countries it is illegal and, therefore, "easy" answer ", tell them that you have violated the law when you make these comments, " Many states do not afford protection based on sexual orientation. Whatever one may think or feel, there really is only one appropriate response, regardless of the law. "Everyone has the right to be treated with courtesy and respect you do not have to agree with someone's life, you only need to give them the respect they deserve in the workplace." response such as this should not offend anyone, regardless of any religious or philosophical views May they have on homosexuality.
When we come to work, comes with all the baggage we have acquired during our life. It does not matter whether you are 25 or 55, and we all have perceptions about other people, places, coming out, the practice of religion, lifestyle they lead. We can not always leave our luggage in our cars, but it can be checked at the door when we come to work in the morning. And if we forget to pick up our luggage when we went to the end of the day, so much the better.
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