262 arrer ; mk 12 SO i 4 's we move further into the 21st century, the demographic nature of the work- force continues to reflect dramatic changes that began many years ago. Women continue to join the workforce in increasing numbers and are now entering careers that were previously the exclusive bastion of men. As Goldstein and Gilliam (1990) note, “For women, factors such as career aspirations, enhanced ‘opportunities, and supportive services such as child care and flextime have con- tributed to participation in the labor force” (p. 137). For example, in 1998, the workforce included more than 22.3 million working mothers with children under 18 years old (Gordon & Whelan, 1998). Indeed, it is estimated that by the year 2050 the U.S. population will be 24 percent Hispanic, 15 percent Affican American, and 15 percent Asian (Bryan, 1999), and this balance will be represented in the workforce, as well. In short, the organizations of today and ‘tomorrow are, and will continue to be, populated by men and women from a wide range of racial, ethnic, and cultural groups. ‘What is it like to be a woman or a person of color in today’s workplace? ‘What factors contribute to their organizational experiences? What are the bene fits and challenges of a culturally diverse workplace? And what strategies can be instituted to enhance the effectiveness of culturally diverse organizations? In this chapter, we discuss these issues and consider the implications of the changing. workplace. First, we examine the experiences of people of color and women in the workplace and attempt to answer questions about how those experiences are changing. Then, we discuss the notion of a “multiculeural organization” and consider the advantages and challenges of such a workplace. Finally, we look at some strategies for developing, managing, and celebrating a culturally diverse organization, Before we begin on these topics, however, it is worthwhile to consider briefly the terminology that will be used in this chapter. Writing about organi zational diversity can be a challenge, as terms used to describe people can be viewed as having a variety of meanings depending on who is involved in theORGANIZATIONAL DIVERSITY PROCESSES 283 conversation and the norms of particular contexts of time and place. In this, chapter I will use the term white rather than the term EuroAmerican that was used in the last edition of this textbook. I have intentionally made this change both because this is the term most typically used in our ordinary conversa:ions. about race and because “whiteness” has become a concept of theoretical inter est to scholars in recent years (see, e.g., Grimes, 2002; Nakayama & Martin, 1999). I will use both the terms people of color and minorities in this diseustion, as well, chough itis certainly true that “white” is also a color (see Grimes, 2002) and that the term minority might at times be misleading when we consider sheer ‘numbers. What is more important than the terminology, of course, is an under standing of the communication and experiences of a wide range of individuals and groups within increasingly diverse organizational settings. ities in Today's Organizations ‘As noted above, women and people of color are entering the workforce in increasing numbers. But what are their experiences inthe workplace? Are these experiences similar to those of white males? The consistent answer to this ques tionis that the experience of women and people of colori vastly diferrt from. that of white men (Allen, 1995). One of the clearest examples of this sa phe ‘nomenon that has come to be known as the glass crling. As Mortson and Von Glinow (1990) explain, “The glass ceiling isa concept popularized in the 1980= to describe a barrier so subtle that tis transparent, yet so strong that i prevents ‘women and minorities from moving up in the management hierarchy” (p, 200). Heilman (1994) lays out the relevant statistics: “While women occupy 364 ofthe ‘management positions in the United States. ..less than 3% of the top executives in Fortune 500 companies ae women’ (p. 126)."The situation is even more grim for people of color. Thus, a defining aspect of the experience of women and minorities in today's organizations is difficulty in moving up the corporateladder into the ranks of upper management (Powell & Butterfield, 1997). There are othe ffculties as well. For example, Morrison and Von Glinow: (1990) note tha “women and minorities who have advanced into management ‘often find reward differentials” (p. 201, emphasis added). Furthermore, some ‘writers have advocated differential carer tracks for “career primary" women and “career-and-family” women (Schwartz, 1989). Women in the second group (on the “mommy track”) are assumed to want flexible work arrangements and fam- lly support in exchange for ewer opportunities for advancement. This can lead 10 serious problems both for indvidwals who want to take advantage of family- fiendly policies and for those who don’t (Williamson, 1994). Finally, women and people of color are often hampered by restricted access to power and sub: ‘optimal tak assignments (see, e.g, Ohlott, Ruderman, & McCauley, 1994). InCHAPTER TWELVE addition to these overt measures of difference, many women and people of color find themselves marginalized, and taking on the role of the “outsider within” ‘established organizational systems (Allen, 2000; Collins, 190), ‘Thus, women and people of color do, indeed, have different organizational experiences shan white men. In the next few sections we'll explore those differ- ences further by considering the concepts of discrimination and relational barriers in the organization and by looking at some of the unexpected experi- ences of living in a gendered organization. Stereotyping and Discrimination (One of the most fundamental ways in which the experiences of women and people of calor differ from the experiences of white men i in perceptions and axtiudes—and the behaviors that are sometimes the result of those perceptions and attitudes, In esence, women and people of color often ae viewed in biased ways by others, and those biases may result in very different kinds of treatment in the organization. Gender and cultural bas in the organization have rwo com- ponents: “Prejudice refers to negative attitudes toward an organization member based on his/her culture group identity, and discrimination refers to observable behavior forthe same reason” (Cox, 1991, p. 36). For example, a manager may believe, based on cultural steeorypes, that Japanese American workers are tanatserive or that Mexican American workers are lazy. A patient might believe that only men have the mental eapacity to be doctors. A customer might think that an elderly salesperson must be senile. These attudes are all examples of prejudice. Ifthese beliefs result in differential treatment of people in the organi- zation, dscimination has occurred. Research suggests that both prejudice and discrimination exist in the orga nizational context, Morsson and Van Glinow (1990) observe that: “There is growing concern that differential treatment of women and blacks is not related t0 performance alone. Some studies suggest that deficiencies are pre~ sumed even when no differences exist because stereotypes based on historical roles pesist.... Ambiguity oF lack of specific information about an individual conteibutes to bias against women and minorities because judgments are based ‘on negative stereotypes ofthe group as 2 whole. (p. 202) ‘The stereotyping of women and minorities in the workplace is not always overt and simplistic, however. Osland and Bird (2000), for instance, note that people in organizations often get beyond irrational stereotypes such as “The (fill in the blank) are lazy, dirty thieves, and their women are promiscuous” (p. 66) and engage in stereotyping that might be seen as more sophisticated (e.g., “gays and lesbians tend to be politically progressive”) or as helpful (e.g., “individuals who are in wheelchairs prefer to be weated no differently than others”).