Human Relations and Equal Opportunity in the Workplace

Introduction

Human relations is an interdisciplinary field that focuses on the intersection of communications, psychology, sociology, and management to better understand how individuals and workers interact and engage in personal and professional relationships. The field emerged in the 19th century when industrialization was expanding rapidly in the West. Researchers focused on ways of maximizing potential, understanding human relations activities, and the various types of motivation. Frederick Taylor was a leading researcher who is today known as the father of the scientific management approach: he focused on maximizing efficiency, minimizing waste, decreasing the amount of required labor, and producing a streamlined approach to human relations that was more science-driven than humane (Locke, 1982). While Taylor helped introduce the idea that all human interactions could be understood by processing data and crunching numbers, the reality is that human relations are complex and human beings require a great deal of empathy and sympathy, no matter what the numbers and statistics say.

Today the core concepts, competencies, and principles of human relations focus on building and fostering relationships in order to create a healthy and dynamic work environment where people will want to be employed. In the 21st century there is a need for human relations because globalization and technology have made workplaces more diverse than ever before. With so much diversity come certain challenges, such as how to ensure that there are no generational, gender, ethnic, or racial biases permeating the workplace and causing divisions (Downey, van der Werff, Thomas, & Plaut, 2015). Human relations is needed today to ensure efficiency and healthy interaction among employees and stakeholders in the organization. To ensure such, there is a need to emphasize equal opportunity and to make sure there is an equal opportunity for employment and success for all workers. This paper focuses on human relations and Equal Opportunity Representatives (EORs) to show where they can improve and what needs to be done to advance the field of human relations this century.

Literature Review

Social change is the process of alteration by which a society's culture, ideals, and behaviors transform over a given period of time (Perry & Perry, 2016). For example, in the 20th century in the U.S., significant social changes occurred regarding race, sex, and gender: segregation ended as a result of the Civil Rights Movement, women became emancipated as a result of the Feminist Movement, and the LGBTQ+ community gained greater recognition as a result of broader cultural shifts toward social justice. Traditional norms and values were replaced by values and norms focusing on promoting social justice and equal opportunity. As a result of these changes, new focus was needed in human relations on how to approach teamwork and getting diverse people to work together productively.

There are numerous theories and models addressing how social change impacts workplaces and how those workplaces respond by focusing on building teamwork and respect for diversity. Various theories show that human teamwork is impacted by social interactions, work environment, ecology, and technology (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2013). The human relations theory focuses on the individual (O'Connor, 1999) and holds that, in terms of teamwork, "teams utilize the members' capabilities and talents" (Sycara & Sukthankar, 2006, p. 1). In an equal opportunity environment, every individual is respected for bringing a unique set of skills and talents to the group. However, it ultimately depends on creating a culture that reflects the importance of social change. As Henry Cloud has noted, "if you are building a culture where honest expectations are communicated and peer accountability is the norm, then the group will address poor performance and attitudes" (Smith, 2018, p. 43). This suggests that culture is especially important in an organization and that managers must be mindful of the way unconscious bias can impact organizational culture. Otherwise, the culture will lack honesty and respect and will instead be animated by the unconscious bias of those who shape it. For that reason, harboring bias can be negatively impactful on workplace culture, and employees and managers should do what they can to reduce the risk of unconscious bias affecting workplace relationships. Equal opportunity employers have a responsibility to be non-biased in their hiring and to avoid discrimination in the workplace.

The social psychology theory of teamwork holds that the way in which team members interact will shape the team's performance. As Schyns and Schilling (2013) have shown, it is important that teams have good leaders who demonstrate positivity, because negativity—such as a lack of likeability, a lack of communication, a lack of transparency, and a lack of empathy—will all negatively affect a team. One concrete example of this theory in practice can be seen at Southwest Airlines, where Herb Kelleher created a workplace culture that promoted positive interactions, friendliness, accountability, and respect among team members. This theory also highlights the centrality of trust. Without trust, there can be no working relationships in a team (Morgan, 2006). An organization is, in effect, a large team, and people need to be able to trust one another because they are ultimately held accountable together. Making sure a team is filled with people who have the right skills is important, but so too is having a solid, positive social psychological framework to facilitate the performance of the company.

As an EOR, it is important to consider how social change has created an environment in which diversity and inclusion issues are now more common in the workplace. Creating a positive and respectful culture is critical to being a good equal opportunity representative. As Smith (2018) points out, creating a culture where accountability is a norm is crucial to being a successful EOR. EORs must monitor workplace practices to make sure they are in compliance with equal opportunity laws and regulations. They should also assist in the human relations department by helping to create the right culture. Diversity and inclusion are central focuses of the modern world, especially in the workplace. However, unconscious bias remains a problem. It can prevent managers from recognizing the contributions of particular groups or employees, lead to a decrease in morale, and cause a negative workplace culture to develop. Eliminating bias from the decision-making process can be accomplished by promoting diversity and inclusion—particularly inclusion, which is the process by which all people feel they are part of the group that makes decisions and has access to important information. One way to help make this happen is to cultivate emotional intelligence.

Altindag and Kosedagi (2015) define "emotional intelligence" by examining each component separately. They define "intelligence" as having three dimensions: social, abstract, and mechanical. Social intelligence is what people use to adapt to their social environment; knowledge of human behavior, expectations, nature, and communication all contribute to social intelligence. Abstract intelligence consists of understanding ideas, principles, and concepts and possessing the ability to apply these to real-world problems. Mechanical intelligence refers to the skill of using concrete tools to achieve objectives (Altindag & Kosedagi, 2015). Having emotional intelligence means that one is able to identify the emotional needs of others and supply the emotional support and sensitivity required in any given situation. This is important because when an EOR lacks emotional intelligence, people can begin to feel that they are being treated unfairly or with prejudice.

When people feel that their workplace is biased or prejudiced against them—even if unintentionally—they do not feel compelled to be loyal to the company. They may leave and go work for a company that is more inclusive and welcoming, or they may file a harassment lawsuit. Either way, the failure to perceive how bias negatively impacts workers can bring negative attention and serious consequences to a company that is trying to remain competitive.

When bias enters the workplace, diversity and inclusion can suffer. Unconscious bias can prevent certain individuals from being hired, from being promoted, or from being selected to work on certain projects. Some workplaces may unconsciously promote the idea that only men make good leaders and will only consider men when hiring for management positions. They may not even realize they harbor a sexist bias, but the effect is that women are not considered for management roles at that firm.

Bias can also affect whose résumé gets reviewed and whose is ignored. This can be especially prevalent in organizations hiring from a diverse talent pool. Unconscious political and social bias could lead managers to overlook résumés from persons from a particular country because that country is routinely associated with terrorism or human rights abuses in the media. Because, as Bandura (2018) points out, people are subject to media influences in how they form their perspectives, they can harbor this type of bias without realizing it—and can in turn prevent certain groups from being considered for employment.

Unconscious bias can also limit an organization's ability to be diverse and inclusive by causing managers to acknowledge the good work of only certain persons or groups. For instance, a male-centric workplace culture may only recognize good work accomplished by male employees, overlooking the contributions of female employees. Alternatively, managers who unconsciously favor younger workers may overlook the talents of employees from different generations or ethnic backgrounds and prefer to appoint older workers to key project roles even when younger employees may possess more relevant technical skills. Bias can thus severely handicap a company's ability to be inclusive and open to diverse contributions.

An equal opportunity representative can help create positive social change by assisting in the creation of a positive, respectful workplace culture. The EOR can work with organizational leaders to emphasize the importance of following laws and regulations regarding equal opportunity, and can help create training plans and programs with HR to foster awareness and respect for others.

Equal Opportunity Representative: Definition and Responsibilities

An Equal Opportunity Representative (EOR) is one who monitors and evaluates "compliance with equal opportunity laws, guidelines, and policies to ensure that employment practices and contracting arrangements give equal opportunity without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, or disability" (Onet, 2018). The duties of an EOR typically include:

The EOR must have a working knowledge of laws, court processes, and court rulings. The EOR must be informed on political and social issues that could impact rules and regulations so that companies can be prepared. How workers are recruited, selected, and trained is also important. The processes of labor relations and contract negotiation must be understood. Customer satisfaction is another area the EOR must be mindful of. Groups and how they behave, social trends, migration, and cultural competencies are all areas in which the EOR should be well versed. The EOR should have emotional intelligence and should be able to "give full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times" (Onet, 2018). In order for the EOR to be successful, he or she must know how to understand and communicate effectively with people.

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