Equality is the revised name for "Equal Opportunities". Equality protects people from being discrimanted against on the grounds of their sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, religion, belief, or age. Equality is about creating a fair society. Employers have a legal obligation to treat all employees fairly and to comply with anti-discrimination legislation.
Diversity on the other hand, is about recognising individual or group differences. Diversity is about valuing each employee based on their capablity and talents. We live in a multi cultural society therefore a diverse workforce is good for any business.
Review of Margaret Mountford's article
Having read Margaret Mountford's opinions on women in senior positions I agree with the following comments she suggested:
1) "Women should not be in high positions unless they really want to and have earned it" - Most individuals would like to be promoted on their own merits because they feel proud to achieve their success through hard work.
2) "If you think you only get on board because 50% of people have to be women, what self-respect can you have?" - If women are given senior positions just to make up numbers they will feel less valued in their position and may have low self esteem knowing they are in a position which they have not earned.
3) "You can't complain that you are not on the board if you decide to leave the main stream have a few years off then come back and not work the hours". - senior positions require a high amount of commitment so women should not demand flexibility during child bearing years.
Having read Margaret Mountford's opinions on women in senior positions I disagree with the following comments she suggested:
1) "Women should stick at it, hang on in there. In the professions, certainly women can get to the top but they don't always want to" - As most women are responsible for child rearing/family commitments with men being the main bread winners they do not always have the same opportunities as they are too busy looking after the family to worry about their careers.
2) Margaret Mountford is disdaindul of women demanding to work more flexibly during child bearing years "They want companies to bend over backwards" - it is unfair to say that women should not have help from their companies during child bearing years in terms of flexibility because even the most committed and hardworking female may want children.
3)"If they are talented enough people will want them but why should companies be forced to have them?" - It is good for any organisation to have a good mix of male/female employees otherwise they are not complying with the law.
The Age Legislation Act 2006
The Age Legislation Act was introduced in 2006, as an employer you are not allowed to target people of certain age groups for jobs you advertise for and you can not refuse to employ someone on the basis of their age. Businesses must therefore be careful when advertising for a vacancy by making sure they do not directly or indirectly state an age preference. We tend to hold stereotypes about young and old people. The stereotype of young people are that they are unreliable and do not take their job seriously. The stereotype views of older people are that they are slow in their work and not efficient as young people even though they might be more experienced.
Benchmark practice in relation to Equal Opportunities
Sainsbury's carried out an extensive recruitment drive in 2005 before the age legislation became law, by making 10,000 full time jobs available for the over 50's. This was a good idea as the older generation were given opportunities to fill these jobs and bring their experiences to Sainsbury's. This also promoted equal opportunity and diversity.
B&Q 2008 launched a campaign to attract more women to its stores. B&Q attempted to "feminise" their stores to appeal to women. B&Q now have a 50/50 gender employment split in their business.
Conclusion
In conclusion Equality and Diversity is important for any business. An employer has a duty to treat all staff fairly without discrimination and diversity in the workplace is good because each individual can bring talent to a business. Legislation is in place to make sure that employers do not discriminate anyone.
Reference list:
Equality and Diversity [online]. Available from: http://www.ed.ac.uk/schools-departments/equality-diversity/about/equality-diveristy [Accessed 25 April 2010].
Margaret Mountford [online]. Available from: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/career_and_jobs/articles 6830916.ece [Accessed 25th April 2010].
Sainsbury's [online]. Available from: http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2005/05/18/29965/sainsburys-seeks-to-recruit-10000-50-somethings.html [Accessed 26th April 2010].
B&Q (2008) [online]. Available from: http://www.personneltoday.com/articles/2008/03/11/44853/b.html [Accessed on 26th April 2010].
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