Labor Flows
Leading in the Asian Century: A National Scorecard of Australia’s Workforce Asia Capability
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Lisa Annese, Jane O'Leary
Asia accounts for over 50% of the world’s population and its consumer demand is worth U$10 trillion annually. For Australian businesses, one of the biggest impediments to realising this "Asian opportunity" is a lack of understanding about Asia capabilities – in particular which capabilities are critical to business success and how prevalent they are in the workforce. This study clearly defines and measures individual Asia Capability, to understand the prevalence of Asia capabilities in the Australian workforce. A survey which conceptualized and measured individual Asia capability was developed and piloted, then administered to a nationally representative sample of 2000 Australian workers. Findings were used to create a National Scorecard of Australia’s Workforce Asia Capability which mapped the nature and extent of Asia capabilities among Australia’s workforce, and enabled organisations to assess their workforce Asia Capability against a national benchmark. There is currently no agreed definition or measure of Asia capability in academic literature. The findings provide a theoretically and empirically-based conceptualization of individual Asia capability, consisting of experience, knowledge, and abilities in seven key Asia Capability Domains.
Attitudes towards Homosexuality Based on Religion and Workplace Discrimination
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session Ikraam Kraft, Lusanda Sekaja, Byron G. Adams
In many societies, individuals hold negative attitudes towards homosexuality and, as a result, homophobia is widespread. Religion has been identified as one of the main contributing factors that determine an individual’s attitude towards homosexuality In some instances, members of a religious group may experience discrimination in the workplace, which may further influence their attitudes towards homosexuality. Historically, discrimination against people has been rife in South Africa, and laws have been developed to discourage such behaviour. This study assesses whether religion and experiences of workplace discrimination negatively influence attitudes towards homosexuality. The study was carried out using a quantitative, non-experimental, cross-sectional research design. The Religious Identity Short Scale, the Centrality of Religiosity Scale, the Attitudes Towards Homosexuality Scale, and the Chronic Work Discrimination and Harassment Scale were administered to various participants (n = 449) across organisations in South Africa. The results from indicated that there is a statistically significant relationship between religious identity and negative attitudes towards homosexuality for Catholics and Muslims, whereas general religiosity accounted for negative attitudes towards homosexuality for Protestant Christian Groups. Furthermore, experiences of discrimination were statistically significant for negative attitudes towards homosexuality. These findings suggest that religious individuals and individuals who experience discrimination are more inclined to hold negative attitudes towards homosexuality, which could influence relationships in the workplace. Therefore, organisations should provide training to counter negative attitudes towards homosexuality and create policies that protect individuals in the workplace who identify as homosexual.
Women, Blacks, and the LGBT Population in Brazilian Unionism: A Case Study
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session João Góis
This study examines the debate over minority groups and valuing diversity in one specific sector of Brazilian trade unionism, which was formed by faculty associations and trade unions in federal public institutions of higher education. Three key issues are addressed in this paper, including the process in which the debate mentioned above has been incorporated into these associations’ and trade unions’ agendas, the factors that have helped and those that have hindered the advance of that incorporation, and the real status achieved by the debate in the trade union organizations considered. The sources used in the study were interviews of sixteen trade union leaders from different universities,and documents, such as working reports, produced by trade unions and posted on their websites. The debate in question continues, by and large, to occupy a fringe position. However, a growing movement can be seen to be attributing it higher status.
