Workplace behavior based on race differences Part #3

Disadvantages 

To increase job satisfaction, workplace diversity management could sometimes be very costly, when an organization strives to effectively manage the diverse workforce, it undergoes mandatory diversity training during which supervisors, employees, and managers receive lessons on the best way to interact with employees and clients.

In recent times, there are lots of Diversity management programs available where companies could choose from, taking into account the size of the company and its employees. Some training programs require high traveling and participation costs.

One significant disadvantage of working with a diverse workforce is discrimination in the part of both managers and employees. It can exist but a hidden aspect of a poorly managed workplace.

When a worker is being discriminated, it affects his ability to perform well and it also affects the perception of equity and raises issues of litigation. Workplace diversity can negatively impact communication in the company. It can place an obstacle in the way of effective communication, which can cause a decrease in productivity and dampen the cohesiveness among workers.

Even though spending time with employees by getting to know them helps reduce and in some instances eradicate communication barriers during a long-term, co-workers orientation periods and an individual´s first impressions can be difficult to control when culture clash.

Myriad Accommodation: Although the premise of workplace diversity is mutual respect, making way to accommodate each diverse worker´s request can be burdensome of employers, which makes it difficult to manage diversity.

Some employee work constraints such as race, religion, country of origin and gender can sometimes be overwhelming if the diversity in the organization tends to be so much to the extent that the company has to employ a fulltime staff to keep track of accommodating the employee’s needs. For example, some Muslim employees may decide not to work on Fridays, as it is a special day for prayers. In such instances, employers have to make provisions for someone to take their shift when the need arises.

Incorporation issues: Social incorporation at the workplace cannot be influenced to the maximum degree. Forming exclusive social groups is often a natural process that cannot be controlled sometimes.

Therefore, companies tend to experience some degree of informal divisions amongst their workers thereby creating conditions where diverse employees avoid having contact with each other during leisure times and when work is over.

Although this scenario doesn’t seem fundamentally wrong, it can reduce the effectiveness of knowledge sharing amongst teams and hence decreasing productivity.

You can find more on Part #4