| Chapter 1: | Communicating Within a Multicultural Workforce |
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The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has made it possible for individuals with disabilities to benefit from the same privileges afforded to workers in the U.S. In addition, the ADA has provided opportunities to encourage businesses to hire and facilitate the work of many talented people who were once deprived of access to employment. Organizations such as the Job Accommodation Network (JAN), a service of the President’s Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, are devoted to promoting the abilities and talents of employees with disabilities. JAN works with organizations in accommodating workers with disabilities, while at the same time putting qualified people to work (O’Hair, O’Rourke,&O’Hair, 2001).
Ways of Looking at Culture
According to Loden and Rosener (1990), a culture that fosters diversity is an institutional environment built on the values of fairness, diversity, mutual respect, understanding, and cooperation. The shared goals, rewards, performance standards, operating norms and a common vision of the future guide the efforts of every employee and manager. This trend is one of the major factors that have contributed to the importance of intercultural communication. Clearly, this cultural diversity affects how messages within organizations are planned, sent, received, and interpreted.
Each individual grows up in a culture that provides patterns of acceptable behavior and a belief system. In addition, a person may not even be aware of the most basic features of his or her own culture until that individual comes into contact with other people who do things differently. Similarly, every communication takes place in a social context,