Gender Diversity in the Workplace - Coursework Example

TIME Gender Diversity in the Workplace What organizational research has discovered in the last five years. Gender Diversity in the Workplace By 18TH AUGUST 2017. 08.30 A.M GMT One of the major issues that has brought a tremendous impact on organizational research in Australia has been the issue of gender diversity in the workplace. Several organisations have recognized the need for embracing gender diversity in the workplace. According to the Gender Diversity Report of 2014, women form only 30% of the labour force in most companies as compared to men that constitute to 70% of the labour force. The glaring gender gap has played a critical role in the need to adopt measures that can enhance diversity in the workplace (Hacker 2017, p. 19). A workplace that is characterized by the presence of both female and male employees is likely to achieve the goals and objectives of the organizations more efficiently as compared to the firms that have a larger percentage of the employees who are male. There are different aspects of gender diversity that has shaped the perception of a diverse workforce in the contemporary organizations. Male Dominance in the Workforce Several studies have found out that the labour-force in Australia is dominated by the male gender. In most corporations such as BHP Billiton, Wesfarmers, and National Australia Bank, the percentage of the male gender is higher than that of the females (Bridge 2014, p. 25). This is because the traditional societal roles that are attached to both genders. The females are expected to take care of the children while the males are expected to provide for the family economically. This perception has therefore created an unfavourable environment for the women in the workforce. Most business organizations have not embraced the importance of gender diversity since they believe that the women are less likely to perform that the male gender. Interestingly, the findings from the Workplace Gender Equality Agency suggest that even in the informal sector, the labour-force constitute 85% of the males as compared to 15% of the female gender (Bridge 2014, p. 31). The preference of male workforce to female employees has been contributed to different factors such as the perceived skills and expertise in several areas. Moreover, other organizations believe that the women cannot work effectively in heavy industries such as manufacturing industries (Hacker 2017, p. 27). The stereotype that the males are stronger physically than the females is one major factor that has led to a higher number of males in the labour-force as opposed to the female gender. In most business organisations, the priority is given to the male gender during recruitment while the women are just picked to represent the female gender. This strategy has hindered effective implementation of a diverse workforce in the modern organizations. Another area where there is male dominance is the percentage of the male gender in the executive positions. The Workplace Gender Equality Agency found out that only 10% of chief executives are women. The male gender constitutes of 90% of the executive officers in multinational companies that drives the economy of Australia (Bridge 2014, p. 78). Hence for every ten board members of an organisation, only one is a female. Moreover, the female must exhibit unmatched expertise and ability to deliver in the particular field. This perception has this hindered the ability of organisations fully embrace workplace diversity. Most women have therefore shunned away from seeking promotion since they know that are several procedures that have been put to bar them from gaining top leadership positions at the helm of well-established organisations (Chuang 2013, p. 49). Gender Pay Gap Another critical issue that has played a critical role in gender diversity in the workplace is the gap in pay among the male and female gender. Organisational research has shown that the salary that of the women is lower than that of men in most business entities. According to the 2015 Gender Diversity Report, men earn 24% more than women per year. Hence an average woman employee earns less income as compared to the male employee. The gender pay gap has thwarted efforts to promote gender diversity in the workforce. The gender pay gap that demoralizes the female workers since the pay they get cannot sustain their daily needs. In several business organisations, an average woman worker thus feels that her contribution to the company is not appreciated since the male are paid more even if they are in the same position. The gender pay gap has therefore reduced the motivation among the female gender as they have resorted to low positions as well as self-employment ventures. The gender pay gap in most organisations has been the major contributing factor that has affected the absorption of women into the workforce. Since only a few firms have adopted equal pay for both female and male gender, a larger percentage of the women employees have not found an enabling environment that can satisfy their needs in the workplace. The business organisations therefore should embrace efficient measures aimed at bridging the gender pay gap between the women and men in the Australian labour-force (Chuang 2013, p. 56). The stakeholders such as labour organisations should be at the forefront of creating a conducive environment that is characterized by equal pay between the men and women in the workforce. Benefits of Embracing Gender Diversity Business organisations that have created an enabling environment can experience several benefits in their operations (Chrobot-Mason et al. 2013, p. 101). This is because a workforce that is diverse regarding gender becomes inclusive hence can sustain both skilled male and female workers. Organisations that have embraced a workforce that is characterized by both male and female gender form a hub of ideologies, opinions and different views that can be used to achieve the goals and objectives of the company. This is because men and women have different opinions concerning critical issues that affect the management of the company. For example, in a case where an organisation wanted to adopt new policies and regulations regarding important issues such as global operations, it will need the different views of the male and female gender (Chuang 2013, p. 63). The women employees are likely to contribute tangible decisions that can be used by the management of the company to ensure smooth operations in the international markets. Although the decisions of the managers are usually final, the opinions of the female employees can also be incorporated into the overall decision of the company. Research has shown that companies that use the decisions of both male and female employees are likely to succeed in enhancing their operations (WGEA 2017, p. 36). Business organisations should also adopt a diverse workforce since it results in the acquisition of multiple and diverse insights such as the best strategies for dealing with disasters whenever they strike a business. Another benefit that contemporary organisations can enjoy due to the possession of a gender diverse workforce is that it opens channels for a culturally diverse customer base (Chuang 2013, p. 79). Clients of companies usually study the way a company operates and its workforce. In case the company has adopted a diverse gender culture where the employees consist of men and women in almost equal proportion, the customers will enhance their relationship with the company. The company will be thus seen as a business enterprise that values gender diversity in the workplace as opposed to companies that practice gender biases during employment. In the increasing global world, a diverse gender workforce is likely to utilize the critical and diverse ideologies and opinions that have been generated from the male and female workforce. The organisational culture is crucial in developing an effective relationship with the customers hence business organisations should enhance its culture to improve its relationship with both the workers, customers and other stakeholders such as labour unions. Moreover, adopting a diverse gender workforce enables an organisation to attract and retain skilled female workers (Hacker 2017, p. 44). There are a lot of skilled female employees who are experienced in various fields such as human resource management, accounting as well as finance. However, such women can only work in an organisation that has created a sustainable working environment. In the case that such employees realize that the employer exhibits gender discrimination, they are likely to seek employment elsewhere. Such a situation can lead to high turn-over of employees. However, in the case that multinational companies such as National Australia Bank embraces gender diversity, the company will attract other skilled female workers and retain these who are highly skilled. This is because the enabling environment will provide suitable conditions for the female employees (Sandrine et al. 2016, p. 79). A gender diverse organisational culture will ensure that both genders are respected and the workplace is devoid of discrimination and biasness. However, if the organisational culture despises one gender, the company will experience problems since the relationship between the workers and the managers will not favour the achievement of goals and objectives. One of the major measures that highly successful companies usually desire is to attract and retain world class employees who can steer growth and development in the business. Through embracing a diverse gender workforce, business organisations can ensure that they are able to attract and retain talented and experienced employees within the organisations (Hacker 2017, p. 46). Another benefit that an organisation can achieve through adopting a diverse gender workforce is proper and efficient hiring strategy (Chrobot-Mason et al. 2016, p. 124). The hiring of employees is usually a challenging aspect in most business organisations. This is because the firms tend to examine critical aspects that they believe an employee should possess. One of the important aspects is gender. The societal expectations such as giving priority to male employees are one of the hindrances that prevent the employment of female employees (Sandrine et al. 2016, p. 84). Whenever an organisation undertakes recruitment of employees without favouring one gender, the company has a higher chance of employing skilled and a diverse workforce that can have an immense contribution into the company. Hence through adopting a diverse gender workforce, a company can adopt a strategy of hiring workforce efficiently. This can also result in an inclusive employment that can satisfy the needs and wants of the workers. In summary, contemporary business organisations should ensure that they embrace a diverse gender workforce to boost their operations. The stakeholders such as labour unions should also ensure that they assist workers in fighting for their writings in the workplace. Through reducing the gender pay gap and the male dominance in the labour-force, business organisations can create an enabling environment for both the male and the female gender. Reference List Bridge, DL 2014, ‘The Glass Ceiling and Sexual Stereotyping: Historical and Legal Perspectives of Women in the Workplace’, Journal of Sociology. vol., 4, no. 6, pp.581. Chrobot-Mason, D & Ruderman, MN & Nishii, LH 2013, Leadership in a diverse workplace, London: Sage Publishers Chuang, SF 2013, ‘Essential skills for leadership effectiveness in diverse workplace development’, Journal of Business, vol. 5, no 1, pp.234-250 Hacker, S 2017, ‘Pleasure, power and technology: Some tales of gender, engineering, and the cooperative workplace’, Journal of Management. vol. 5, no, 2, pp.89-93 Sandrine D, Alix Z, Cecile K and Sandra S 2016, ‘Reinventing the workplace for greater gender diversity’, McKinsey & Company, http://www.mckinsey.com/global-themes/gender-equality/reinventing-the-workplace-for-greater-gender-diversity, Accessed on 18, August 2017 WGEA, 2017, ‘About workplace gender equality’, Australian Government, https://www.wgea.gov.au/learn/about-workplace-gender-equality, Accessed on 18, August 2017. Read More