Race And Culture

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Impact of Race & Culture on Human Resources The growth in diversity in the U.S. workforce requires a greater understanding of culture and cultural differences. Brislin (1993) maintains that culture consists of “ideals, values, and assumptions about life that are widely shared among people and that guide specific behaviors.” In light of the enormous importance of and variation in cultures, human resource managers in the contemporary workplace must gain knowledge and develop sensitivity to such variations. This is necessary in order to effectively organize and lead workers to achieve goals, while reducing workplace conflict and tensions that arise due to cultural and racial differences. Human resource managers must acquire a variety of skills…show more content…
To gain the most value from a diverse workforce, employees as well as management must gain knowledge and understanding of different races and cultures. Technology enables a cost-efficient method of helping promote such knowledge and understanding. Multimedia video presentations focusing on different cultures and races employed by a company can go far in promoting such education. So, too, such presentations can be viewed by employees and management when it is most convenient or even from…show more content…
Equal opportunity and fair treatment of employees regardless of race, culture or gender are guaranteed by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Civil Rights decisions on affirmative action are best expressed in the University of California v. Bakke case, but such decisions have come under fire of late by opponents of affirmative action that claim it unfairly discriminates against whites. A number of lawsuits were brought against the University of Michigan for awarding 20 of the required 100 points for admission to any candidate who represented an underrepresented minority. The Court’s decision ruled in favor of assessing race as criteria for consideration but cautioned that it should only be one of many considerations. However, the decisions supports the belief among American educators and businesses that the skills needed in today’s society can only be developed through exposure to widely diverse people, races and cultures. As the Court concluded; “Educational benefits that diversity is designed to produce, including cross-cultural understanding and the breaking down of racial stereotypes...is further bolstered by numerous expert studies showing that such diversity promotes learning outcomes and better prepares students for an increasingly diverse workforce” (Hershberger 2003,
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