As the role of HR develops, so too does the issues it faces. Transforming from a purely operational function to an integrated strategic function, HR must proactively plan for and address contemporary issues. The recollection of events surrounding Julia Gillard’s time as Prime Minister, written by Kerry-Anne Walsh, is a recent piece of literature that highlights issues for the role and practice of HR.
“The Stalking of Julia Gillard” (Walsh, 2013) is a political commentator’s depiction of Australian politics and media from June 2011 to April 2013. This time in Australian Government saw the first female Prime Minister lead the ALP to pass a record 561 bills (Singleton, 2013, para. 1), including a number of notable policy achievements. However, …show more content…
As society becomes accustomed to the advancement of women in the workforce and as traditional roles of men and women continue to be challenged, organisations and the HR practice will benefit from a more diverse and creative workforce.
Directly relating to gender diversity is the issue of EEO and its enforcement. While gender diversity is about the management and involvement of men and women in order to benefit the organisation, EEO relates to the legislation and policies enforcing the inclusion of women and minorities, and minimising legal risks and discrimination.
Surrounding electoral gender quotas is a large amount of research and debate regarding validity and effectiveness of such a measure. Even though the idea is to achieve equality, quotas have been viewed as unnecessary and even discriminatory, and can pose questions of legitimacy to women who fulfill the female quota. However, this form of EEO is necessary because institutional and cultural gender biases continue to exist, imposing very real barriers to women in the electoral …show more content…
More importantly, the role of HR in strategy also need to develop and implement long-term strategies that address the social and cultural barriers to women’s equal participation in the workforce and actively promote organisations that strive for gender equality.
A range of recommendations can be provided in an attempt to strategically and proactively address these contemporary HR issues. The issue of gender diversity in the workforce and how it affects the role of HR has an on-going impact, however, HR practitioners can implement several ideas, as the workplace becomes a more equal grounds for selection, development, treatment, and representation of genders.
To increase female involvement in the workforce, mentor programs between successful women in management positions and women in the workforce should be developed and utilised. These kinds of mentor programs have shown to be highly successful in the past. In addition, more focus should be placed on the implementation and utilisation of professional development plans for
“The Stalking of Julia Gillard” (Walsh, 2013) is a political commentator’s depiction of Australian politics and media from June 2011 to April 2013. This time in Australian Government saw the first female Prime Minister lead the ALP to pass a record 561 bills (Singleton, 2013, para. 1), including a number of notable policy achievements. However, …show more content…
As society becomes accustomed to the advancement of women in the workforce and as traditional roles of men and women continue to be challenged, organisations and the HR practice will benefit from a more diverse and creative workforce.
Directly relating to gender diversity is the issue of EEO and its enforcement. While gender diversity is about the management and involvement of men and women in order to benefit the organisation, EEO relates to the legislation and policies enforcing the inclusion of women and minorities, and minimising legal risks and discrimination.
Surrounding electoral gender quotas is a large amount of research and debate regarding validity and effectiveness of such a measure. Even though the idea is to achieve equality, quotas have been viewed as unnecessary and even discriminatory, and can pose questions of legitimacy to women who fulfill the female quota. However, this form of EEO is necessary because institutional and cultural gender biases continue to exist, imposing very real barriers to women in the electoral …show more content…
More importantly, the role of HR in strategy also need to develop and implement long-term strategies that address the social and cultural barriers to women’s equal participation in the workforce and actively promote organisations that strive for gender equality.
A range of recommendations can be provided in an attempt to strategically and proactively address these contemporary HR issues. The issue of gender diversity in the workforce and how it affects the role of HR has an on-going impact, however, HR practitioners can implement several ideas, as the workplace becomes a more equal grounds for selection, development, treatment, and representation of genders.
To increase female involvement in the workforce, mentor programs between successful women in management positions and women in the workforce should be developed and utilised. These kinds of mentor programs have shown to be highly successful in the past. In addition, more focus should be placed on the implementation and utilisation of professional development plans for