Investigating the experience of working in a diversifying workforce : a case study of the committee section of the South African Parliament

Due to significant shifts in the political, economic and demographic environment the imperatives for change within South African organisations are becoming increasingly more urgent. One strategy that organisations are adopting in the face of increased pressures is to create and maintain diverse workforces. This trend is matched on a global basis and the need to manage diversity has become commonplace. While increased workforce diversity presents a challenge to traditional organisational management it also holds the promise of providing innovative strategies for a changing work environment. Whereas there is an abundance of literature on managing diversity there is a paucity of work on the psychological, experiential aspects of working in a diverse workforce. The principal objective of this research was to develop a conceptual framework for understanding the experience of working in a diversifying workforce. The researched followed a case study approach focusing on the committee section of the South African Parliament. Data were collected from twenty committee clerks through open-ended, in-depth interviews. The data was analysed using qualitative data analysis techniques. Five major themes emerged from the interviews comprising: Confronting a Changing Workplace, Meeting and Engaging with the 'Other', Stimulating Growth and Development, Learnings and Coping Mechanisms. Each theme is made up of a series of sub-themes. The study presents these results in a diagrammatic from and provides an extended discussion of the themes and sub-themes. Analysis of the results demonstrates that working in a diversifying workforce has an enormous impact on the participant's experience of work and the quality of their working lives.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Organisational Psychology

Year dc:date.issued

1999

Author dc:creator

• Goodman, Suki

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Sully, Max

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/16118

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/16118