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Catherine Gastelum

04/24/15
Chapter 5 Summary
It is important in a work environment for everyone to be included no matter what their
race, gender, age, sexual orientation, or disability they may have. This diversity of indiciduals is
what makes up the hospitality industry. It is guaranteed that everyone hired will be different, and
no one is the same. In 1978 the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was
established to ensure that all laws regarding the diversity of individuals in the workplace were
followed on a day to day basis. According the book, culturally appropriate communication
strategies are needed in the work place in order to keep an open door policy.
The EEO wants businesses to survive and in turn gives many services to leaders looking
to have a diverse work environment that support equal opportunity. According to the EEO it is
illegal to discriminate against applicants and employees when recruiting, hiring, promoting,
compensation or firing based on their race, color, religion, gender, nationality, age, or disability.
By doing this, one is making decisions of employees on anything but their actual ability to do
their job. This all started in 1963 with the Equal Pay Act when the law required for men and
women to be paid equally based on equal skills, effort and responsibilities given for similar
working conditions. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act of 1964, VII updating the
previous Equal Pay Act to make it unlawful for a work establishment to discriminate against
applicants or employees based on their race, color, religion, gender or national origin. This did
not change the way an establishment hired or fired someone if they were not qualified for the
job. Some other kinds of discrimination in the work force also include age. In 1967 the Age
Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was created to prevent for a work force to
discriminate against a person just because they are over the age of 40. The Pregnancy
Discrimination Act of 1978 makes it illegal for an establishment to refuse to hire or promote a
woman who is pregnant. Pregnancy in this law is considered a temporary disability and cannot
be discriminated against. In 1986 the Immigration Reform and Control Act was placed into
effect, in 1990 it was amended stating that an employer cannot discriminate against an employee
based on their national origin or their citizen status. The only way someone being hired can be
discriminated against is when hiring someone who is not legal to work in the US, illegal aliens.
This is determined during the application process when one files their I-9. In order for a work
establishment to be fair, they are not able to request work status documentation from some
applicants and not all. In 1990 the American Disabilities Act (ADA) was created to make it
unlawful for a work establishment to discriminate against applicants or employees with physical
or mental disabilities. An establishment is unable to ask anyone if they have a disability, or ask
questions about previously known disabilities as well. However, they are allowed to ask if their
disability can prohibit them from performing certain acts in the workforce. A work place is also
required to reasonably accommodate for those with disabilities without lowering the quality or
quantity or standards in the work place, or any changes that would affect the productivity of the
work place as well. Finally, in 1993 the Family and Medical Leave Act was created to allow for
employees to take an unpaid leave of absence from work for up to 12 weeks per year when the
birth or adoption of a child occurs, a child has a serious health problem, a spouse or parent has a
serious health condition, or when employees themselves have a serious health condition as well.

However, in order for an employee to be eligible for this, they need to have worked at an
establishment for at least one year.
With these acts in place, work establishments need to be careful what they ask applicants
or their employees. This means they need to think about whether or not heir is relevant and if it
is important in understanding whether or not a person is able to perform certain duties in the
work force. It is also important to ensure that inclusion is practiced in the work force at all times.
It is important for a supervisor to remember that each individual has their own cultures that they
follow, and may be culture bound. This means that you believe that your culture and value
system are the best, the one and only. They believe that their idea of thinking and behaving is the
normal way of thinking, and instead forget that everyone else has their own culture as well.
Supervisors need to make sure that they listen carefully to their employees, that they do not start
to align stereotypes of a persons culture with who they are, and that they do not speak in a way
that degrades their employee as well as degrades them. It is important for a supervisor to
understand each of their employees cultural practices, because it can cause for barriers to be
created when communicating. In order for a supervisor to be able to create a diverse work
environment that recognizes, respects, and focuses on the different cultures of employees, they
must also follow the same practices they want their employees to practice as well. Supervisors
need to remember to not treat all employees the same, as each person is different. They need to
look out for any signs of harassment in the work place. A supervisor cannot play favoritism in the
workplace, and must show respect to all genders. In order for a supervisor to create a diversity
and inclusion program they must; develop a mission statement that includes diversity and
inclusion, develop goals for these ideas to be followed and in different areas of the work
establishment. They must develop objectives and strategies to show how the goals will be met
and monitor the progress of the goals as well as their accomplishments.

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