88
Y
After you have read this chapter, you should be able to:Discuss why managing diversity is important to strategic human
resources management
Understand the less obvious types of differences that employees
bring to the workplace
Understand the types of sexual harassment
Understand why diversity efforts often failA
s the demographics of American society change, so too has the composi-
tion of the workforce. Women, persons of color, persons of differ-
ent ethnic and religious backgrounds, persons with physical and mental
disabilities, homosexuals, and transgendered individuals are more visible in
the workplace than in the past. To be successful, employers need to manage a
diverse workforce and ensure that promotional opportunities and compensa-
tion are determined by job performance, initiative, or special skills.
Diversity refers to differences in underlying attributes or nonobserv-
able differences, such as working styles, values, and personality types, as
well as differences in culture, socioeconomic background, educational
background, spirituality, occupational background or professional orien-
tation, industry experience, organizational membership, group tenure, and