Inequality is one of the most acute problems in modern society.
You can face it almost everywhere – at school, in your office, or in a neighborhood community.
Researchers say that higher rates of inequality are strongly associated with various health and social problems including, mental illness, physical diseases, and even higher crime rates.
Unfortunately, a lot of people struggle with the negative consequences of intolerance at the workplace mentioned above.
As a result, their productivity and overall job satisfaction get reduced.
And the question that remains unanswered for many of us is ‘What are the reasons for workplace intolerance?’
Let’s try to find it out!
Article Table of Contents
The Dangers of Workplace Inequality
The most obvious problem caused by workplace inequality is business revenue.
When some members of the staff feel that their rights are being discriminated against, they can’t really work well.
The statistics show that teams, where inequality is observed, have low productivity levels since the efficiency of every employer drops.
Consequently, the overall company revenue suffers as well.
If managers allow individual differences to cause interruptions in workflow, it results in numerous unfinished tasks and projects.
A lack of cooperation and interpersonal problems that arise because of inequality can become more than an internal issue, creating a bad reputation for the company.
Hence, it becomes almost impossible to hire top professionals and achieve recognition in a community.
Unhealthy, psychological atmosphere diminishes all the work, leaving a company no chance to stand out from competitors.
So inequality brings really huge risks which are better to avoid.
The Causes of Workplace Inequality
Workplace inequality can be triggered by various factors.
Sometimes, people are intolerant towards others because of a certain bad experience associated with them.
However, a negative attitude may be based on a lack of experience as well, which is completely the opposite of the previous case.
Another reason may be religious identity.
According to the information from some college essays at Eduzaurus, religious discrimination is one of the main social issues on a global scale.
Unfortunately, some employers are not willing to hire candidates of a different faith who don’t share their belief system.
Inequality may also be a result of ethnic diversity.
Individuals of different races and nationalities than a majority of a company’s staff may be the victims of corporate intolerance.
In fact, pretty much everything that defines a certain aspect of a person, including age, political views, and sexual differences, can be a reason for an intolerant attitude.
However, the problem is not in individual differences but in the way we perceive them and react to those dissimilarities.
The Benefits of Equality
The benefits of equality in the workplace are not limited to just avoiding legal issues.
In fact, fairness, dignity, diversity, and mutual respect can bring much more.
Business experts say that tolerant attitudes and a positive psychological climate foster a creative environment where more innovations are built.
Whenever a problem occurs, diverse perspectives can be considered and a team’s horizon expanded.
What’s more, being one of the core elements of a healthy environment, equality can drive productivity and reduce absences.
Additionally, companies known for their positive attitudes towards minorities and harmonious working relationships have a great reputation.
Not surprisingly, it attracts more clients and customers.
The best talents from around the globe are willing to join such businesses and contribute to their success.
Managers that are looking to improve the well-being of their entire workforce can boast of a great team diversity that ensures a big variety of fresh ideas and new inventions.
How to Promote Corporate Equality
Promoting greater equality may be a real challenge that requires much effort.
As mentioned above, inequality is often triggered by a lack of experience and knowledge about people with some dissimilarities.
Hence, employees should learn more about individuals of different races, cultures, ages, and so on.
The more one learns about others during team-building sessions, the less room is left for social biases.
Any social issues that might affect the work atmosphere can be solved through education and interaction.
It’s also important for everybody to put themselves in the position of another person to understand their problems and things that prevent them from accomplishing some goals at work.
We all can be intolerable towards others if we don’t understand why they do some things in a certain way.
Hence, it would be great for HR managers to organize occasional training sessions at work that would help team members get in touch with each other and understand mutual concerns.
For sure, it will help everybody realize that others are not making mistakes on purpose or with a bad intention.
What’s more, it gives a chance to identify issues before they grow beyond control and prevent problems from escalation.
Apart from that, employers must ensure equal salaries and opportunities for everybody as well as implement equal rights policies and plans for the future.
Final Thoughts
Today, equality in the corporate world is a hotly debated topic.
Maintaining positive human relationships in a company should be the aspiration of every business owner.
It does not only help everybody to thrive as individuals but also contributes to the development of the whole work team.
When every member of the staff respects and understands the rest of the crew, productivity and operational flow get enhanced.
When there is equality at the workplace, employees are more open to helping each other with challenging tasks, so everybody benefits from it.