‘Covering’ in the workplace
Introduction
This is an essay on “covering” in the workplace. Various organizations have gone afar from supporting diversity to implementing it in their organizational culture and workplace. With globalization widening and making places more accessible, it is becoming increasingly necessary that employers to modify the work environment so that all the employees can be accommodated in the workplace. This is very necessary and significant as it will make it possible for all the employees to be feel welcomed and as a result will natural tend to give their best. (Paul par.1).
Advantages and disadvantages of covering
The advantage of covering is that it enables the racial minorities, women, or gays to be legally protected from discrimination for the things they can’t help. Also covering assists celebrities and politicians to manage their public images. An example is Jon Stewart who changed his name simply because Leibowitz was too Hollywood, and he confessed that it worked well (Yoshino pg2). Finally, it gives the legally protected groups a right to self-expression that the uncovered people do not have; it protects employees from being fired unnecessarily (Yoshino pg3; Green par. 4). It is clear that an on organization can only thrive and realize its set goals and objectives by acknowledge diversity factor which exits among its employees. This can be approached through considering of multiple solutions to a problem that faces the organization and sourcing. An organization can also consider the use of diverse skills and experience to promote good service delivery. Workplace diversity also inspires workers to perform beyond what they consider as their limit thus ensuring that the company realizes its set goals and objectives.
The limitation of covering is that the contemporary civil rights society has made a blunder in focusing exclusively on the traditional civil rights groups. This has led to the assumption that the straight white men need not to be covered. In addition, it has led them to be understood as obstacles, individuals who prevent others from expressing themselves, instead of people who are struggling on their own to for self- identity. This is the reason why the so-called mainstream responds with hostility to the civil rights advocates.
Discrimination
In America, discrimination has gone through a generational change in the recent decades. In the past, discrimination was directed towards the entire group which led in the exclusion of all racial minorities, gays, and women, the disabled and religious minorities. A series of civil rights laws tried to battle these forms of discrimination, thus it succeeded in making such categories of exclusions by the state or employees relatively rare. After that, a new form of discrimination that never aimed at the groups as a whole replaced it. It aims at the subset of the group which refuses to cover or to absorb to dominant norms. To the greatest extent, the existing civil rights laws do not defend persons against such covering demands. Unfairness toward assimilation is reflected by the distinction between being and doing. Traits like skin color or chromosomes can be protected by courts because such traits can’t be changed. However, the courts will not protect mutable traits because the individuals can alter them to fade into the mainstream, thus escaping discrimination. If individuals do not choose to engage in such form of self-help, they will have to suffer the consequences (Paul pg3).
Many of the employees have the culture of not welcoming changing trends at their workplace with regard to social and cultural values and practices. Their mentality of doing work in a certain way silences new ideas and inhibits progress. For diversity programs to succeed, perceptual, cultural and language barriers need to be overcome. Ineffective communication of key objectives leads to confusion, lack of teamwork and low morale. Lastly, diversity training alone is not sufficient for an organization’s diversity management plan hence. As a result, strategies have to be formulated and implemented which give provision to every department to function in a diverse manner (Green par. 3).
Employees from diverse backgrounds, who are uncovered, will fear to bring out their inborn talents and potentials due to fear. They would also choose to share ideas and recommendations regarding fluctuating markets and demand among customers. Also, a diverse workforce that feels uncomfortable communicating varying points of view provides a limited pool of ideas and experiences. Thus, such organizations can not realize business goals. They also fail to satisfy customer needs leading to poor performance. For a wide collection, the Human resource executives have a pivotal role in streamlining areas affecting employees through good communication and change of capability.
Conclusion
In America, discrimination has gone through a generational change in the recent decades. In the past, discrimination was directed towards the entire group which led in the exclusion of all racial minorities, women, gays, the disabled and religious minorities; hence the need to cover them. There is no single doubt that the success of any organization solely depends on its ability to embrace diversity which dwells among all employees in the world. The advantage of covering is that it enables the vulnerable groups be legally protected against discrimination for the things that they can’t help. Uncovering employees makes them to be reluctant in sharing their personal ideas, experiences and talents which are fundamental in dealing with organizational trends and performance challenges. Thus diversity makes workplaces more productive, stronger, stable and universal. It should be embraced under whichever circumstances in order to realize, growth and performance beyond productivity as emphasized by many business organizations.
