the Workplace Justice Consortium

A young muslim woman in the UK has just been awarded $6000 for being told she had to wear a figure hugging dress to wait in an English bar over summer when the men were not asked to change their uniforms for summer and were able to dress modestly in dark clothes. It was determined the insistence that the women comply with the bar’s “dress code” was “gender specific” and “hostile”. However the article also made mention of a photo taken of the smiling claimant in a “revealing white top” on social networking website Facebook.  The clear implication was that the case may have smacked of double standards and opportunism.  What are your thoughts? Did the bar violate her dignity and create a “humiliating” environment? Does she have the right to object about the uniform yet choose in her own time to dress according to her own choice?

Rashida Dati is the first senior government official appointed in France of North African descent.  Dati has attracted considerable attention having just returned to work as French Justice Minister only 5 days after giving birth to her child and being openly single. Feminists in France have slammed her as a poor role model whom they have allege has sold out on other working women and put further pressure on them all to be “supermums, not wimps.”

Should her decision be one of personal choice?  If she has the ways and means to be able to return to work after childbirth (which afterall is not a disease or illness), should she? Does she automatically raise the bar for other women and create an unrealistic and unreasonable expectation in employers of other women after childbirth?  Is her situation different to the average woman’s who may not have the financial wherewithall to arrange quality child care after the birth of  her chil/ren? Furthermore, is it reasonable to assume that she returned to work so soon, as asserted by the Planned Parenthood Association because of the pressure to “defend her standing in France’s male-dominated politics” rather than intrinsic dedication to her work?

Several of our client organisations scaled back or cancelled Christmas parties this year.  Do you think organisations that do that are tightening their belts out of fiscal responsibility, managing perceptions and potential criticism of flamboyance in the face of job insecurity or retrenchments or rethinking ways of spending the money?

One of my client organisations cancelled a large-scale Christmas party as they thought it was disrespectful to celebrate when some staff had been retrenched (and others were likely to follow) however they sought input from staff as to which charities staff would like the party budget to be asssigned.

What are your thoughts?  Does an organisation have the right to celebrate at the end of a tough year, honour its staff and show appreciation with an end of year party or should it be up for negotiation? Do you think the risks of things getting out of hand between colleagues at notorious Christmas parties is enough of a reason to cancel them? 

What did your organisation do?  

The enthralling second cricket test at the SCG has been marred by controversy as Harbhajan Singh is hauled before the International Cricket Board on allegations of racial vilification against Australia’s star all rounder Andrew Symonds.  This is an interesting conundrum for all who love their cricket, have respect for its traditions and yet are equally passionate about equality and racial tolerance.

The middle of the cricket pitch is ostensibly these cricketers’ workplace. By Australian law, if Harbhajan called Symonds a monkey, and this was unwelcome, then he has perpetrated racial harassment.  But there are some interesting questions to ask.  What if the Indian spinner was seriously provoked by Symonds?  Does that justify his response? What if in context it appears he called Symonds a monkey instead of a dingbat or an idiot?  What about the argument that sledging has been around as long as the game itself and the Aussies have always given as good as they have received. Should Ricky Ponting have got involved (did you see the way Harhajan celebrated when he took Ponting’s wicket?!!)? 

Ponting showed active support for his team member by making a complaint. Some would say that if he chose to back Symonds and address the issue rather than decide what happens in the middle stays in the middle he could have had a quiet drink with Anil Kumble who could then take his bowler to task.  On the other hand if, as we are led to believe, Ponting had already addressed the issue with the Indians after the unsavoury goings on in Mumbai and there was a gentlemen’s agreement in place, it should have been honoured.

Do you think this is political correctness gone mad or should the rules apply in every domain?  Much of the work done by the Workplace Justice Consortium tackles these issues every day.  If Symonds was offended and the content was racial, Harbhajan deserves to be suspended for several matches. If Symonds was guilty of the same thing, then they should both be out although the cricket tragic in me would be very deflated.  

the Workplace Justice Consortium website: www.workplacejustice.com.au

I was asked to speak recently to a group of staff partners in a large legal firm about culture and the link between behaviour and high/low performance at work. The media was in a feeding frenzy (and still is) about Ben Cousins and as I thought about some of the qualities that contribute to high performance like strong achievement drive, unwavering focus, unbending discipline, it occurred to me that a lot of those qualities, in higher doses could manifest as narcissistic, perfectionistic and obsessoid behaviours  and therefore be quite maladaptive, even destructive. In other contexts ‘dark side’ behaviours could well be situational strengths.

What examples have you seen in your workplace of self belief that comes across as arrogance, authoritive leadership that feels like bullying to the recipient, confident decision making that smacks of ingenuine consultation?  Is it just a matter of degree or is something else at work here?

Leanne Faraday-Brash

Latest Article:
When Is Just Enough Too Much - The Dark Side of Leader Behaviour©

the Workplace Justice Consortium website: www.workplacejustice.com.au

At the Workplace Justice Consortium© we provide:

• a wide range of Employee Relations and Human Resource services to large and medium-sized organisations
• over thirty years combined experience in Human Resources, Organisation Development, Employee Relations and Conflict Resolution
• an extensive network of experienced professionals including psychologists, lawyers and Employee Relations practitioners

We welcome the opportunity to make a positive difference to your workplace.