Go Tools Window Help 6 Diversity Assignments-2.pdf (page 10 CASE Marion Shaub wa

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Go Tools Window Help 6 Diversity Assignments-2.pdf (page 10 CASE Marion Shaub was the only female tractor-trailer driver at the Middletown, Pennsylvania, facility of Federal Express (FedEx). Shaub alleged that she was constantly subjected to antifemale remarks and threats from her male coworkers. After she made numerous complaints about the gender- based hostility and harassment at work, Shaub alleged that the brakes on her truck were sabo- taged and that her coworkers refused to help with the loading of her truck. After Shaub was fired in October 2000, she sued FedEx under Title ViIl. In early 2004, a tederal jury found FedEx liable for a sex-based hostile environment and retaliation, awarding Shaub $391.400 in back and front pay, $350.000 in compensatory damages, and $2 5 million in punitive damages. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 allows for punitive darnages in cases of intentional discrimination such as that expenienced by Shaub. QUESTIONS TO CoNSIDER 1. Why might Shaub's coworkers have been so hostile toward her?

Explanation / Answer

(1)

A long history of inequality among the sexes and underrepresentation of the female employees in the workplace, athletics, and academics, have created a societal stereotype. This has resulted in creating a belief system that women are not suitable for some particular profession. So when this belief system is hurt by the reality, people often oppose and that opposition is manifested in their hostile behaviors in the workplace. Added to this is the lack of diversity management programs which need to be conducted by the employer.

(2)

The signal to other prospective women employees of truck driving is very clear. When there is a hostile work environment for a women employee in a large firm such as FedEx, there will be lack of confidence all over the society. Definitely, being a prominent part of the society and economy, FedEx represents the culture and workplace friendliness of the women employees in the society. When issues stated above are reported, other women in the society show reluctance in joining this type of professions and the stance of intensifying the stereotypes advances.

(3)

FedEx could have realized beforehand that such types of stereotypes exist in the organization and recruiting a single women driver may create hostile work environment if stereotypes are not suppressed in a planned manner. It should have made the supervisors responsible for maintaining a friendly atmosphere and educated the existing drivers for welcoming a new female employee. This would have created a prior sense of alertness for the drivers and the supervisors. Additionally, it could have recruited more than one female employees and also could have monitored the workplace conditions proactively in the form of an audit.

(4)

FedEx could have noted the incidents reported by Shaub and investigated the facts. When found material, the involved persons for creating hostile environment could have been taken to a process of progressive discipline (verbal warning followed by documentation). Having done that, the company should have educated the other drivers again to treat with a new employee with care irrespective of the gender.

(5)

As a matter of prevention, FedEx should plan and implement a company-wide diversity management programs cutting across all the levels in order to involve all the employees. The idea behind such programs should be stereotype suppression and for that matter, proper policies and procedures should be formulated. However, the policies and procedures that improve the climate for diversity can only be effective when they are designed to acknowledge the perspectives of all the employees in the organization. For this reason, the company should not focus on the one-shot diversity training sessions and must implement the comprehensive diversity programs that address the climate for diversity at multiple levels in the organization.

(6)

Severe penalties can be levied on the employer if an employee is injured or dead due to the hostile work environment. On one side, the company will be in trouble because earlier the employee had reported such hostile work environment which was not rectified. It will come under Title VII and EEOC will take this to the court. On top of this, the employer will also be liable to OSHAS for unsafe workplace/ practices and will incur a heavy penalty for that as well.

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