- In an article titled ” More talk than action: gender and ethnic diversities in leading public health universities” which explored the discrimination faced by minority women in the workplace. The article explores the lack of women in high level positions because of their race and gender. It addresses how changes could be made in modern day workplaces to help decrease the pay gap and expose some of the racial inequality these individuals are experiencing. Although some women find themselves in senior positions it is noted they only maintain these roles so each company can reach a certain quota. However it argues that race and gender shouldn’t play such a monumental role in the hiring process and that an applicant should be viewed solely by their skill and not by their characteristics.
This article is important because it features the voices of students at public health universities and how finding high ranking positions can be particularly hard for minorities. It provides an important aspect when viewing the future world of college students and how applicants are sometimes judged not only based on their abilities. I think this piece will be important because it shows how ones livelihood can be affected by certain prejudices placed in the world. If we can address these problems even earlier in the education process we can help young minorities get the opportunities and positions they deserve.
3. Of course some might object that having an open floor plan leads to less work productivity. Although, I concede that being constantly watched by others might make you more determined to get work done, I still maintain that having an audience only makes you self conscious about your work and hinders the quality and speed at which its being done. One thing the author fails to talk about is that when people are constantly looking at the work you are doing and harshly critiquing your assignments you are unless to complete the tasks as well. I also feel anxiety when people can see the work I am doing and wondering whether it really measures up. I feel that these expectation only shelter negative effects on each worker and won’t ultimately lead to success.
Focusing primarily on how the workplace has created women as a minority is fascinating, as a woman myself I do see pieces of this today when comparing my parents who work in the same field. Placing this ideology into other scenarios also bridges the connections that many of us fail to make, such as the gender wage gap and the glass ceiling. I feel the same way about the open concept of offices, that with the idea of someone judging me for not doing my work as efficiently it only increases my productivity and forces me to try even harder, but it also at the same time makes me self-conscious to the judgements of others in a way that is more counter-productive than positive.
One of your classmates is looking at the mental health aspect of diverse workforces–we should consider the impact of office spaces on people with anxiety, for example.