ST ID 21201314
EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
Equality and diversity are related terms,
still, they are different from one another. Equality is the term used which
involves a general feeling that everyone is treated equal, irrespective, of
where they come from and what social background they possess within an
organization (Mullins, 2010). On the other side, diversity is more like creating an environment
that recognizes and thrives on the differences of all and recognizing those to
be able to work peacefully and coexist with one another. It is about
maintaining such a setting that respects and value differences (Foot and Hook, 2008).
British airways follow the concept of
equally valuing everyone and constantly work towards producing an inclusive
culture that understands and respects the individual differences of all its
employees (Cross,
2000). The diversity strategy of this company towards
racial equality is that they listen to their ethnic minority staff and try to
increase their representation at senior levels. Also, it works with units such
as Race for Opportunity that guide it on race equality issues (Diversity Strategy, n.d).
The company value diversity of religion and belief by safeguarding
the faiths of all. It provides prayer facilities across the business and
publish religious festivals newsletter on their intranet site so that it can
create awareness of different cultures (Flood
and Romm,. 1996). It also takes step towards decreasing
harassment and bullying and raises awareness of dignity and ensures that
everyone is aware of its equality policies (Equality and Diversity (E&D), n.d). Furthermore works
closely with other companies to share information and create best practice on
the eradication of this.
Equality and diversity need to be
managed with great care at work place wherein people of different cultures and
backgrounds work together. Taking the case of British airways, the company has different
ways of valuing equality and diversity at its workplace. Being the leading airline
in United Kingdom, it has a medley when it comes to employees (Equality and
Diversity, 2006). As people having different faiths
and religious beliefs are working with the company, prayer facilities are
provided to them and a monthly newsletter of religious festivals is published
to raise awareness regarding the varied cultures in the organization. Moreover,
the airline giant also caters to the different dietary patterns of its people
by providing them a variety of options, which makes sure that all foods are
labeled and prime requirements are fulfilled (Diversity Strategy: British
Airways, 2012).
British airways have
incorporated sexual orientation in its diversity management program. The
corporation has close ties with institutions like Stonewall which is devoted to
equality for bisexual people. The company provides an inclusive workplace
environment for all types of employees (Wright and et.al., 2006).
In addition to this, it is
the priority of British airway’s race equality policy to address the problems
of its employees belonging to ethnic minorities (Walsh, 2007). The firm
encourages sharing of ideas related to training and development, career
progression, bullying and harassment. Its prime goal is to elevate the number
of ethnic minority people representing at higher cadre. The organization has
joined hands with Commission for Racial Equality and Race for Opportunity for
seeking guidance and advice on issues of race equality (Kirton and Greene, 2006).
Books, Journals and
Articles
Mullins, L. 2010. Management and Organization Behavior. 9th
ed. FT Prentice Hall.
Foot, M. and Hook, C.
2008. Introducing Human Resource
Management. 5th ed. London:
FT Prentice Hall.
Cross, E.Y. 2000. Managing Diversity: The Courage to Lead. Greenwood Publishing Group
.Flood,
R.L. and Romm, N.R.A. 1996. Diversity Management: Triple Loop Learning. J. Wiley.
Kirton,
G. and Greene, A. M., 2006. The discourse of diversity in unionized contexts:
views from trade union equality officers. Personnel
Review. 35(4). pp.431 – 448.
Walsh,
J., 2007. Equality and diversity in British workplaces: the 2004 Workplace
Employment Relations Survey. Industrial
Relations Journal. 38(4). pp.303-319.
Wright,
T. and et.al., 2006. Lesbian, gay and bisexual workers: equality, diversity and
inclusion in the workplace. Equal
Opportunities International. 25(6). pp.465 – 470.
Online References
Equality and Diversity (E&D). n.d. [online]. Available through < http://www.lsbu.ac.uk/diversity/resources/definitions.htm >. [Accessed on 7th February 2013]
Diversity Strategy: British Airways.
2012. [Online]. Available through: <http://www.britishairways.com/travel/crdivstrategy/public/en_gb#top>.
[Accessed on 2 March 2013].
Equality and Diversity.
2006. [pdf]. Available through: <http://www3.hants.gov.uk/equalityanddiversityv2workbook.pdf>.
[Accessed on 2 March 2013].
