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Top 5 articles of 2018!

We are fortunate to see an increase in visits to our website in 2018 with lots of help from our active volunteers! Now we present the top 5 articles visitors read on our website in 2018.

5. How to deal with religious accommodations in the Workplace

Freedom of religion, in Canada, is a constitutionally protected right that allows religious believers the freedom to assemble and worship without limitation or interference. Religious discrimination is treating individuals differently in their employment because of their religion, their religious beliefs and practices, denying their reasonable request for accommodation or a change in a workplace rule or policy that denies employees equal opportunities due to their religious beliefs or practices. Canadian employers are required to accommodate the reasonable needs of religious employees in the workplace.

4. Women in the Workplace: The Hidden Battle

Throughout our history, women have adopted new roles from working as a housewife to entering the workplace and providing for their family or oneself. As women entered the workplace, we saw issues of sexual harassment, unequal pay and opportunity starting to emerge. These issues are still seen and frequently voiced today as women are continuously taking a stand for their rights. Unfortunately, there are many issues that go unnoticed that need to be addressed. Every day women have to prove that they are just as good or better than their counterparts and when they fail to do so they are labeled as weak, incompetent or just plain lazy.

3. Lack of Diversity in the Workplace Can Cause Stress Among Employees

The success of an organization in today’s competitive world depends upon how well it embraces the challenges of diversity and realizes its benefits. Employees from different backgrounds, ages and ethnicities bring their own set of experiences and world views, and are better able to provide a wider range of solutions to developing problems. Most of all, a lack of diversity has been linked to increased discrimination which in turn leads to elevated stress levels among employees. The National Center for Biotechnology Information note that discrimination due to immigrant status, legal status, skin tone or language can contribute to increased stress in individuals.

2. The Pros and Cons of Hiring Older Employees vs. Younger Employees

Ever thought you would one day be in a position where you would have the decision on your hands to make or break someone’s career? Well if you are, here is something that you might come across depending on the nature of your job. This article aims to analyze some of the main factors to consider while picking the right person for the job. At the very outset, I must make it clear that I am referring to older as in more experienced professionals and not just being ageist.

1. Workplace Issues and Solutions

There are a variety of workplace issues that both employers and employees encounter. Some of these issues are minor while other workplace issues are more significant and require frequent attention from employees for the workplace to function properly. While it is the responsibility of management to take steps to develop strategies to combat workplace issues, employees also have a responsibility to speak up when they recognize issues that contribute to or may eventually lead to problems.

This article was mostly contributed to and edited by J2DW volunteers!

Lack of Diversity in the Workplace Can Cause Stress Among Employees

This is a sponsored article.

The success of an organization in today’s competitive world depends upon how well it embraces the challenges of diversity and realizes its benefits. Employees from different backgrounds, ages and ethnicities bring their own set of experiences and world views, and are better able to provide a wider range of solutions to developing problems. Most of all, a lack of diversity has been linked to increased discrimination which in turn leads to elevated stress levels among employees. The National Center for Biotechnology Information note that discrimination due to immigrant status, legal status, skin tone or language can contribute to increased stress in individuals.

So how do companies deal with the diversity in the workplace? U.S. companies spend millions of dollars every year on diversity programs and policies, ranging from equal employment opportunity compliance to cultural sensitivity training programs. This leads most people to assume that it makes companies fairer to both women and minorities; the reality is much different, however. Implementing diversity program has little actual positive effect and may even decrease representation according to the Harvard Business Review. Even when there is clear evidence of discrimination, the mere presence of a diversity policy automatically leads people to discount any claims of wrongdoing.

This leads to increased stress levels and with long-term discrimination can lead to acute and chronic stress. The body enters a defensive posture which closes our ability to learn and impairs judgement. Statistics Canada states that over one in four workers report being highly stressed and over 62% of workers reported that work is the main source of stress in their lives.
Lottoland describes this kind of stress as ‘distress’, which could be permanent, prevents the body from coping, is demotivating and decreases productivity. As opposed to ‘eustress’ which is a euphoric stress that can actually motivate, increase productivity and make us feel excited. Strong leaders create a stress-free environment where people do not need to get into that kind of defensive posture.

Diversity should be a critical component of the innovation that leaders strive to achieve in their organization, and research shows that diverse groups outperform homogenous ones. Research conducted by Credit Suisse focusing on 2,400 companies, found that organizations with at least one female board member yielded higher returns on equity and net income growth than those who did not employ women on their board. Working with people from different backgrounds than you will challenge your brain to think more diversely and expand your horizons. The effect of this relationship is that the brain is happier which in turn lowers stress levels and makes a person generally happier as well.

Workplace diversity can, however, have some unwanted effects which leaders must manage effectively by promoting diversity of thought and innovation. Here at Journey to Diversity Workplaces we say that diversity brings about a variety of ethical issues like sexual harassment due to sexual orientation, racism and gender bias. These are critical situations that interfere with work, personal lives and cause high levels of stress both in the workplace and at home. Particularly in a company that is lacking gender and racial diversity these unwanted effects can be more pronounced. A good leader, therefore, must be fair to manage diversity effectively and when employees enter that stressful phase, the leader must be able to pull them out if it. When people experience fair treatment and a positive and genuine diversity, it will in turn reduce their stress levels and improve their health.

This sponsored article was edited by volunteer editor Erin Murphy.