Discrimination and its effects in the electricity industry

Abstract

Aim This study contends and explains why discrimination in the workforce is a growing problem that has affected thousands of organisations, large and small, operating in today's global marketplace. The research is aimed at describing the perceived experiences of discrimination as well as its effects on employees within the organisation. Method Using a qualitative research design, interviews were used to facilitate the informal sharing of experiences amongst employees. The purpose of this was to understand the different experiences employees had and the impact discrimination had on the individual performance within the organisation. Results Results reveal that employees experience three broad categories of activities that led to experiences of discrimination, namely activities that relates to management and supervision, daily interaction between various groups from diverse backgrounds and unfair general human resource functions. Conclusion The results of the empirical study were discussed according to the themes of Supervision/ Management, Human Resources/ Employee relations and Interactions. It was found that employees were exposed to different types of discrimination, which are explored in the literature review.