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People and Organisations
| Introduction |
My colleagues have been working together over the past
year to develop a new undergraduate module called People
and Organisations (HR1004). From October 2002, most
first year under graduate business students will take
this module. The module covers a number of themes starting
with the Work Environment in the UK. Within this theme
we take a close look at Diversity and Equal Opportunities
at work
We believe that having a diverse workforce is an asset
to any organization but we know that many organizations
fail to maximize the potential of their diversity. And,
in spite of legislation, some organizations discriminate
against different groups and individuals, often through
ignorance. We decided, therefore, that our new module
should help students reflect on these issues so that
they might develop strategies for managing diversity
and challenging discrimination as managers of the future.
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| BE-ME Clips |
The interviews you are about to watch focus
on the experiences of Black and Asian men and women who
came to Wolverhampton in the 1960s. They describe what
it was like to get work, training and promotion at this
time and how they were treated by colleagues, managers
and customers.
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| Aims and objectives |
Before watching the video we
ask students to reflect on their own experiences of being
'different' and to examine their feelings and beliefs
about others' differences. We then ask them to compare
their experiences of 'differentness'to those of the interviewees.
Students can re-play the video individually or in small
groups and read the transcriptions provided. Other materials
are provided to give students some background information,
for example, company equal opportunity policies and the
Race Relations Act 1976. In addition they may also refer
to articles on diversity and equal opportunities at work.
Having digested this material we ask students to consider
a number of issues and questions such as:a) What were
the key factors that either opened or limited opportunity
for the interviewee?b) Do you believe such limiting factors
operate in organisations and work places with which you
are familiar?
c) How effective are the measures to prevent discrimination
in the work place?
d) How have your views changed (or become stronger) after
listening to and discussing these stories and reading
the literature provided?
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| Further development |
In future, we plan to set up electronic
forums, e-chaired by tutors, for students to discuss the
issues raised by the video. Furthermore, we will encourage
students to take an active role in adding to the video
material by focusing on the experiences of young Black
and Asian men and women getting jobs and progressing in
their careers today. We plan to encourage and support
undergraduate research projects in this area. |
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