Successful Multicultural Management

Thomas R. Maloney
Senior Extension Associate
Department of Applied Economics and
Management
Cornell University
In March 1999, 20 New York dairy farm
operators who employ Hispanic workers were
surveyed regarding their experiences with
managing a multicultural workforce. The survey
was conducted with owners of large dairy farms
in New York State. The average herd size was
over 800 cows. Of the 20 employers surveyed,
17 had employed Hispanic workers for five
years or less. The country of origin for most of
the workers employed on New York dairies was
Mexico and most of the employees were young
single men. The survey revealed that the
managers who were most successful at
management tended to adopt management
practices that helped them to be effective. These
practices when combined into a management
strategy for Hispanic workers tend to create a
productive and successful multicultural
workforce.
Dairy farm employers who are successful in
managing Hispanic employees possess the
following characteristics:
1. Successful employers work aggressively to
overcome the language barrier, including
learning to speak Spanish themselves.
Many employers find that learning at least
some Spanish is very important. A common
technique at the outset is to learn at least 40
– 50 common Spanish words. Employers
who learn Spanish begin to overcome the
language barrier and gain the respect of
employees for making an attempt to learn
their language. Employers who learn
Spanish also avoid the problem of having a
Spanish-speaking employee control the
communication on the farm. Many farm
employers have effectively used interpreters
on a regular basis not only to help teach
Spanish and English, but also to translate
during staff meetings and during training
sessions.
Many employers encourage their
employees to learn English. Some pay their
employees more if they know the English
language and serve as an interpreter for the
farm. Other employers have provided
bonuses for those employees who achieve a
certain level of competence in the English
language. When employees are sent to
English classes, employers must be
supportive and encouraging. Many
employees lose interest early if they are not
encouraged. Employees especially seem to
lose interest if they have to pursue English
classes off the farm. Successful employers
work very hard to encourage their
 employees to speak English and make it
easy for employees to access English
language instruction.
2. Successful employers make a
concentrated effort to learn about the
culture of their employees. Learning about
the culture enables employers to better
understand their employees as people, and to
understand the supervisory techniques that
are acceptable and unacceptable to
employees from another culture. Successful
employers use several strategies to develop
cultural understanding. First, they become
familiar with the employees’ culture by
asking them to describe life in their home
country. They also read about the culture of
their employees and contrast it with the
American culture. There are a variety of
books and seminars designed to train
employers on how to implement successful
cross-cultural supervisory practices. For true
cross-cultural understanding to take place it
is also important for Hispanic employees to
Managing a Hispanic Workforce January 2001
learn about and develop an appreciation for
the American culture.
3. Successful employers develop an
organizational culture that accepts and
appreciates the differences that individual
employees bring to the workplace. They
help all of their employees to recognize and
appreciate the differences between cultures.
One of the realities of integrating people of
different races and cultures is that
occasionally racism or prejudice emerges,
creating tensions and disrespect within the
workgroup. Effective managers address
problems of prejudice in the workplace
quickly and directly. They insist that all
employees be treated with respect and
dignity regardless of race or cultural
background. Effective managers also create
opportunities for supervisors and employees
to learn about the culture of their Hispanic
employees and to appreciate that culture.
Successful employers take a proactive role
in helping Hispanic employees to adjust to
the work environment on the farm and
making them comfortable with their new
job. Studies in multicultural work
environments show that when people from
different national cultures begin working
together it is best to create a new
organizational culture which is an
amalgamation, rather than accept a
predominant culture from one of the groups.
4. Successful employers establish
employment policies and carefully
communicate them so all employees
understand the expectations for proper
conduct on the job and on farm property.
Once established, employment policies
should be uniformly enforced with all
employees. It is most effective to set
expectations for all employees including
Hispanic employees at the beginning of the
employment relationship. Work hour
Requirements, performance requirements,
And conduct on farm property are all-important
issues to cover at the time of
hiring. It may also be important to inform
Hispanic employees of local laws and
regulations, particularly as they relate to
operating motor vehicles. This avoids
encounters with the law and also encourages
respect for American laws and regulations.
5. Successful employers make every effort to
hire Hispanic employees who have legally
entered the United States and thereby
avoid employee turnover due to
deportation. Employers have a legal
responsibility to check for proper
identification of all employees and to fill out
an I-9 form and have it on file for each
employee on the farm. The more an
employer can do to increase the chances of
hiring legal Hispanic workers the more he
will reduce the chances of immigration
inspections on the farm and problems of
deportation.
6. Successful employers acknowledge their
employees’ strong family ties and desire
to return home periodically. Successful
employers develop staffing systems that are
flexible enough to allow for employees to
return home for a period of several weeks or
months and then return to the job. Many
employees come to northeast dairy farms to
earn money to support families at home and
often send most of their earnings back to
their family at home. These strong family
ties also create a strong desire for employees
to return home periodically. Managers often
develop systems so that employees can have
extended periods of time off and still fill the
work schedules on the farm as necessary.
Some of the management strategies used to
create a flexible staffing include the
following:
�� Assume at the outset that positions will
have to be refilled periodically.
�� Ask employees when they start work to
agree to give several weeks notice
before leaving employment.
�� Involve employees in finding their own
replacement. This appears to work well
since Hispanic employees have strong
networks of family and friends.
Managing a Hispanic Workforce January 2001
�� Involve employees in training their
replacement and orienting them to the
job before they leave.
�� Encourage employees to return to the
farm after their visit home.
�� Treat employees with respect and
dignity and encourage them to become
part of the farm team over the long term.
7. Successful employers support social and
recreational activities for Hispanic
employees that will create a quality of life
outside of the job. It is not traditionally the
employer’s responsibility to find social and
recreational activities for their employees.
However, when Hispanic employees come
to northeast dairy farms they often lack
constructive activities in their time off.
Some employers encourage employees to
join local soccer leagues, create the
opportunity to attend local churches, and
provide opportunities to get away from the
farm to shop and pursue personal interests.
8. Successful employers become involved in
community relations to help community
residents accept and support Hispanic
employees and to help employees become
oriented to the community. They become
advocates for their Hispanic employees so
that community residents will understand
the importance of this workforce to the
success of the agricultural community. At
times, Hispanic employees have not always
been welcomed to some rural communities,
and sometimes local landlords have refused
to rent to Hispanic employees. Advocating
for employees means helping employees
become part of the community and helping
community residents to appreciate these new
residents.
Managing a Hispanic Workforce January 2001