Abstract

Individual, institutional, and societal variables all contribute to organizational diversity, which is
aided or hampered by individual, institutional, and societal factors. Countries all across the world
are grappling with concerns of diversity. As a result of the change in population and health
status, migrations, gender disparities, external pressures, and competition, many countries'
workforces are evolving.

We will start our examination of global diversity issues in our report by looking into the factors
that can be used to identify distinct diversity challenges in different countries throughout the
world, demonstrating that prejudice and differential treatment are global problems. Then we look
at religion, education, and racism as essential aspects of diversity in Canada. In each part, we
emphasize the comparisons between groups and the relevant legislation. We try to distinguish
between dominant and non-dominant communities, and other essential distinctions as much as
feasible.

1
 Table of Content
Abstract............................................................................................................................................1

Part 1. Factors to identify diversity concerns in countries........................................................3

Part 2. Diversity concerns and groups of dominance: the case of Canada..............................5

Key diversity concerns to be documented in the case of Canada..............................................5

Workforce participation rates, earnings, and employment differences....................................6

Legislation...................................................................................................................................7

Comparison to the United States................................................................................................7

Part 3. Diversity-related factors to be most concerned about when starting business in

Canada............................................................................................................................................8

REFERENCES............................................................................................................................10

Appendix 1. Figure 16.1................................................................................................................12

2
Part 1. Factors to identify diversity concerns in countries

Figure 16.1 (Appendix 1) shows some of the characteristics to examine when determining
dominant and non-dominant groups, as well as areas of concern, in countries across the world.
Although not every element is important to every class in every nation, diversity issues affect
people and organizations in different ways all over the world, therefore they should be explored
in the places they happen.

Discrimination is based on a variety of characteristics in the figure, including money, literacy,

and age. Color preferences and biases for White people are also included, as is the case in
Argentina, Pakistan, America, and many other nations. In many countries, there are also many
parallels, such as wage discrimination, joblessness, and structural inequality of non-dominant
racial and ethnic groups. There are job-related regulations in many areas that focus on diversity
issues (e.g., equitable employment for women, minorities, or disenfranchised groups), although
who is addressed differs by country.

There are, however, several other criteria to examine when identifying diversity challenges in
countries. One of them is the traits or the number of roles and duties assigned to the non-
dominant group. Certain races, sexes, and other groups may be restricted from doing specific
professions, such as managing directors or CEOs, in some corporations. Even if their skills are
greater than this type of employment, women may be expected to undertake secretarial and
administrative duties. That is an example of discrimination based on gender. Employees from
protected groups may be forced to perform tasks for which they are under-qualified, assigned
labor that is degrading or embarrassing, or given a huge or challenging pressure that is above
their capabilities, leading to their failure.

Second, negative types of communication should also be examined. Offensive remarks, jokes,
and other kinds of communication can all be examples. While at work, some may have heard
jokes or comments about prejudices of a protected class. These may be passed off as harmless
humor that isn't intended to offend, but discrimination can sometimes be a result of them. Some
employees may also notice that their coworkers or bosses adopt a different tone with them than

3
they do with others. For example, they may regularly use a nasty or insulting tone while speaking
to employees in protected classes, whereas others do not.

Religion also plays a role in identifying diversity issues. Religion, as a essential factor of social
and spiritual lives - a set of ideologies and contextual practices rooted within social forms' power
relations - is plainly entwined with other types of identity, such as protected groups, gender, and
race (Warf & Vincent, 2007). For example, Chinese minorities in Southeast Asia are
predominantly Buddhist, but Malaysians are predominantly Muslim, and Filipinos are Catholic.
As a result, people of religious minorities may gravitate toward non-dominant groupings. The
reason for this religious diversity could be because countries with long histories of immigration
have a higher level of diversity in religion since immigrant flows bring their faiths with them.

4
Part 2. Diversity concerns and groups of dominance: the case of Canada

Key diversity concerns to be documented in the case of Canada

To analyze the diversity concerns, there factors of Religion, Education and Racism will be taken
into account.  Each category will be identified based on their involvement in the labor force,
incomes, and legal protections. In today's globalised urban marketplaces, most managing
diversity policies and campaigns in Canada claim that increasing diversity at workplace is
critical for commercial enterprises.

 Religion

Citizenship in linguistic and religious groupings is sometimes confused. Quebecois who speak
French are largely Catholic, while their Anglophone people are dominantly Protestant in Canada.
Croats and Slovenes are mostly Catholic groups in the former Yugoslavia, whilst Serbs are
mainly Orthodox (Warf & Vincent, 2007). Having a long record of relatively free migration,
national laws that divide religion from state, and allowance of cultural variety, much common
wisdom holds that the United States is the world's most religiously diverse nation (Nixon, 2010).

 Education

It's worth noting that minorities' educational attainment does not translate into comparable
employment outcomes. According to Nixon (2010), nearly 50 percent of visible minority
employees aged 23–32 held a university degree, in comparison with roughly 27 percent of
nonvisible minority people of the same age (Trichur, 2004). University degrees were held by
around 35 percent of visible minority employees aged 34–63, in comparison with a fifth of
invisible minority individuals. As a result, visible minority people have greater academic
credentials than their non-visible minority individuals, but their proportions in the top income
groups are lower, suggesting that their incomes are unlikely to reflect their education level. The
Conference Board of Canada (Trichur, 2004) projected that minority populations lose from $2.1
to $3.5 billion a year as a result of their unrecognized learning.

 Racism

5
To create a truly engaged workplace and working environment, it's critical to understand racism
in Canadian society. Racism is described as societal characteristics that "implicitly or explicitly
ascribe values and normalcy to White people, and that degrade, stereotype, and identify
racialized groups as other, different, less than, or leave them invisible" (Lopes and Thomas,
2006). Racist ideologies lead to discriminatory policies and practises in society through actions,
language, and behaviors. Minorities are cut off from society's and economy's resources because
of these discriminatory behaviors.

Workforce participation rates, earnings, and employment differences

Several studies found that visible minority populations in Canada have worse and weaker
workforce, including employment, unemployment, hours occupied, and participation in jobs with
higher wages, as compared to nonvisible minorities. According to research, work possibilities,
upward mobility, salaries, and income have all deteriorated. Historically, the rate of
unemployment for visible minorities has been greater than the general workforce (Statistics
Canada, 2003). Visible minorities made up 15.4% of the labor force in 2006, up from 6.4 percent
in 1986 (Samuel and Basavarajappa, 2006).

The pay difference between visible minorities and Caucasians in Canada is troubling. Samuel
and Basavarajappa (2006) discovered that different ethnic groups had varying wages gaps, with
Blacks having the biggest earnings gap. They further point out that the wage disparity between
visible minority people aged 26 and 65 has not only persisted but has been gradually expanding
over the last 20 years. In 1991, according to Jain and Lawler's (2004) research, visible
minorities’ incomes may be 11% less than the Canadian’s average one. In 2000, the disparity had
grown to 14.5 percent. The disparities in earnings were attributed to shorter months of
employment and lower weekly incomes for visible minority workers.

According to Trichur's research (2004), hiring and promotion restrictions are growing the gap
between policy and reality, negatively impacting the Canadian economy in the long run.
Although qualified minorities were extensively available in the job market and workforce
availability, minorities constituted only 1.8 percent of members on the board of management in
organizations in 2004. Similarly, according to Singal's (2014) poll, only 3% of the sixty-five
medium and large enterprises that replied have a minority CEO, and only 2% of the

6
approximately 800 top executives in the organizations in surveys are visible minorities. The
study also found that 90 percent of companies have no intentions to hire visible minorities to
their boards of directors, despite the fact that the majority of respondents thought that having
visible minorities in decisive roles is crucial.

Legislation

The federal Employment Equity Act (EEA) is a Canadian governmental policy to increase the
diversity in labor force. The EEA applies to both the public and commercial sectors, as well as
any company with more more than 100 employees in Canada and public contracts worth more
than 200,000 dollars (Brown, 2004). Employers in covered industries (such as communications,
transportation, and banking) are required by the EEA to make efforts to reduce discrepancies in
workforce representation among targeted groups (such as females, racial minorities, aboriginal
people, and handicapped people) and the general labour force.

In addition, in 2005, the Canadian government launched the Racism-Free Workplace Strategy
(RFWS) as a critical component of "A Canada for All: Canada's Action Plan Against Racism."
The RFWS aims to improve the EEA's efficacy by removing systematic discriminatory hurdles
that both visible minorities and Aboriginal peoples experience. RFWS emphasizes the
importance of raising awareness about workplace racism and forging solid collaborations with
organizations, businesses, and labor unions (Human Resources and Skills Development Canada,
2010).

Comparison to the United States

The United States is also a place with various diversity, particularly diverse religion. Having a
long record of relatively free migration, national laws that divide religion from state, and
allowance of cultural variety, much common wisdom holds that the United States is the world's
most religiously diverse nation (Nixon, 2010). The United States has hosted a diverse range of
faiths since its founding: 'British America's free migration supported religious diversity rather
than homogeneity,' says Dawson (2020). Apart from these flows, the country generated its own
indigenous beliefs, such as the Mormons (the Church of the Latter-Day Saints), who are possibly
the best example. However, there are compelling reasons to doubt the claim that the United

7
States is the most religiously diverse society in the world, a statement based largely on the
acknowledgement of doctrinal variety among its Christian majority while ignoring what are
perhaps even more significant differences to be discovered among, rather than around, broad
religious sects elsewhere.

Affirmative Action in the United States, which is related to Canada's federal Employment Equity
Act (EEA), is a system of laws, regulations, and administrative processes aimed at ending and
correcting the consequences of a specific type of discrimination. The initiatives tend to
emphasize on access to higher education and employment, with historically marginalized
populations, such as racial minorities and women, receiving special attention.

Part 3. Diversity-related factors to be most concerned about when starting business in

Canada

The majority of diversity research in Canada has been motivated by a financial justification for
diversity: increasing diversity management systems regard workers as capital resources in
businesses, connecting employee diversity with the organization's objectives and commercial
strategy (Metcalfe and Woodhams, 2008). Current diversity management strategies are not
meant to ensure the integration of minorities in a majority culture, with the emphasis on the
importance of diversity to organizations. Diversity gives ways to reduce racial prejudice in the
workplace by recognizing and respecting the numerous aspects that make persons distinct in the
world.

I believe that an anti-discrimination paradigm focusing on racism discrimination should be

developed in order to launch a successful business in Canada. Racism in the workplace can result
in reduced income, violent conduct, and an overall negative mental state for those who are
affected (Olsen & Martins, 2010). This is potentially harmful to both the employer and
community. When people want to acquire the jobs they want, racism still plays a negative role in
some companies. It can be difficult to learn how to cope with racism in these situations, but it is
of great importance.

8
Anti-racism is defined by Johnson, Antle, and Barbee (2009) as a task-oriented approach for
organizational systemic change that targets racism and other forms of systemic injustice. It is
considered to be a societal critical discourse on racism that questions the continued racialization
of social groups for unequal treatment. Race and social diversity are identified as concerns of
power and equality in antiracism, instead of being problems of cultural and ethnic diversity.

While the specific elements of an anti-racism strategy will vary depending on the corporate
culture and characteristics of each company, there are some basic rules that underpin this
approach. To begin, the anti-racism method raises troubling questions regarding the importance
placed on people's ethnocultural differences, as well as how organizations are constructed to
maintain injustices (Roberson and Park, 2007).  According to studies, recruiting processes
frequently discriminate out persons of color who may not own the same backgrounds as White
people, those who were previously employed (Schwind, Das & Wagar, 2007).

Second, anti-racism provides dominant groups with the knowledge and skills they need to
recognize their own privileges and act for social change. According to Roberson and Park
(2007), the essence of anti-racism activity in Canada is a focus on White identity. Anti-racism
educators are ardent believers in educating the dominant group to comprehend that they do fact
live in a different world than racial minorities, and that the latter's perspectives may be
fundamentally different from their own.

Overall, diversity can be quite beneficial to a company. Employees in a diverse workplace must
have the necessary knowledge, skills, capabilities, and mindsets to effectively deal with
coworkers, clients, and managers who are not like them (Singal, 2014). Organizations are
increasingly relying on teams to produce the solutions needed for long-term business success in
order to attain this goal. Fostering diversity, on the other hand, comes with a cost in terms of
communication, collaboration, and disagreement, and can have a detrimental impact on an
organization. Failure to communicate in teams can lead to increased conflict since individuals
from different backgrounds may not believe or have a good understanding with each other. 

9
 REFERENCES

1. Brown, D. (2004). Feds miss minority hiring targets. Canadian HR Reporter, 17(11), 1–

9.
2. Dawson, L. (2020). Religion and Extremism: Rejecting Diversity. Journal Of
Contemporary Religion, 35(3), 580-581. https://doi.org/10.1080/13537903.2020.1775953

3. Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (2010). Racism-Free Workplace

Strategy website. The Government of Canada Labour Program, retrieved
from http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/labour/overviews/workplace_equality/rfws.shtml

4. Jain, H. C. & Lawler, J. J. (2004). Visible minorities under the Canadian employment
equity Act, 1987–1999. Relations Industrielles, 59(3), 585–610.

5. Johnson, L. M., Antle, B. F. & Barbee, A. P. (2009). Addressing disproportionality and

disparity in child welfare: evaluation of an anti-racism training for community service
providers. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(6), 688–696.

6. Metcalfe, B. D. & Woodhams, C. (2008). Critical perspectives in diversity and equality

management. Gender in Management, 23(6), 377–381.

7. Nixon, L. (2010). Religion and Diversity in Canada. Sociology Of Religion, 71(3), 376-

378. https://doi.org/10.1093/socrel/srq042
8. Olsen, J. E. & Martins, L. L. (2012). Understanding organizational diversity management
programs: A theoretical framework and directions for future research. Journal of
Organizational Behavior, 33, 1168–1187.

9. Roberson, Q. M. & Park, H. J. (2007). Examining the link between diversity and

performance: The effects of diversity reputation and leader racial diversity. Group &
Organization Management, 32, 548–568.

10. Samuel, J., & Basavarajappa, K. (2006). The Visible Minority Population in Canada: A
Review of Numbers, Growth and Labour Force Issues. Canadian Studies In
Population, 33(2), 241. https://doi.org/10.25336/p6kk7s

10
11. Schwind, H., Das, H., & Wagar, T. (2007). Diversity management. Canadian Human
resource management: A strategic approach, 486–524.

12. Singal, M. (2014). The business case for diversity management in the hospitality

industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 40.

13. Statistics Canada (2003). The Ethnic Diversity Survey: Portrait of a Multicultural

Society, Catalogue No. 89-593-XIE, StatsCan, Ottawa, Canada.

14. Trichur, R. (2004). Conference Board of Canada Report. Employment Equity Still
Failing Minorities, Canada: Canadian Press Newswire.

15. Warf, B., & Vincent, P. (2007). Religious diversity across the globe: a geographic
exploration. Social And Cultural Geography, 8(4), 597-613.
https://doi.org/10.1080/14649360701529857

11
Appendix 1. Figure 16.1

12
13