Diversity in the Automobile Industry

By Madeleine Cherney

Article Review

My articles are all on the topic of women and minorities working in the automobile industry today. A few of the articles used in this presentation are right from the automobile company websites; this was helpful to gain insight on how the actual companies view the women and minorities working for them.

Concept

The focus of this presentation will be on the content in chapter 12 in the Miller textbook Organizational Communication Approaches and Processes. I will be relating the concept of a multicultural organization to the modern automobile

industry.

Definition of Diversity in a Workplace

Definition:A Multicultural Organization as defined by the Miller textbook:

“According to Cox (1991), a multicultural organization is marked by the full structural integration of women and people of color.”

Three phases of workplace development in the area of cultural and gender

diversity:1. First-generation affirmative action: Company is only concerned about meeting legal requirements in hiring for gender and ethnic diversity.

2. Second-generation affirmative action: Company is past hiring stage of diversity and is regulating shift requirements for minorities and women.

3. Multicultural Organization: Past the concept of supporting minority members and are creating policies that “capitalize on cultural and gender diversity.”

Benefits of a Diverse Workforce in any Industry

It is not a question of whether large industries nowadays would like diversity in their workforce; by law it is required to allow diversity. However, the question is: to what extent are industries actively going through the three phases of workplace development in the area of cultural and gender diversity?

Question

What are some of the automobile companies that are taking the biggest steps in implementing a multicultural organization?

Answer

Automobile companies that are diligently implementing the concept of a multicultural organization

FordGMToyotaFiat-Chrysler

Diversity at Ford

“Of our 16-member board of directors, two are women and two are members of minority groups. Of our 42 corporate officers, six are women and eight identify themselves as minorities.” (corporate.ford.com)

Ford strongly believes that including all cultural opinions in their company is important for building a strong workforce.

Continuation of Diversity at Ford

“For the third time, Ford Motor Company has been named one of the top five companies for diversity by the business magazine and Web site DiversityInc. It's the seventh year in a row that the publication has recognized Ford as one of the top 50 companies in the United States.” (reliableplant.com)

Diversity at General Motors

General Motors, in the year 2000, moved from second-generation affirmative action to a multicultural organization by adding to its values “individual respect and responsibility.” (gmheritagecenter.com)

“GM’s Diversity Initiatives provides a comprehensive set of tools and resources while driving the strategy to enhance business success and ensure a culture of inclusion.” (gmheritagecenter.com)

Diversity at Toyota

Unlike the American big three (Ford, GM, and Fiat-Chrysler), Toyota has not had to deal with diversity in the same way as American companies have. As a result, the three phases to a multicultural organization came easier to Toyota.

“Supplier Diversity: 40.6% higher than the Top 10 and 33% higher than the Top 50 on prime suppliers who are women owned.” (diversityinc.com)

Diversity in Fiat-Chrysler

Fiat-Chrysler claims that securing a completely diverse workforce in gender and ethnics has been a longstanding goal of theirs.

“FCA US is extremely proud of its recent success in increasing the number of our minority-owned dealers across the country. Since 2012, the number of minority dealers in our network has increased from 140 to 185, representing a 32% increase in less than two years.” (fcagroupcareers.com)

Multicultural Success

Concerning the automobile industry as a whole, we now know that at least four large automobile companies have successfully completed the Three Phases of Workplace Development in the area of cultural and gender diversity (first-generation affirmative action, second-generation affirmative action, and multicultural organization.) This leads us to the next question:

Now that it is clear that Ford, Gm, Toyota, and Fiat-Chrysler are indeed proclaimed multicultural organizations, to what extent is this the case for the automobile industry as a whole?

Women as a Gender Minority in the Automobile Industry

“Although women represent about half of the US workforce, they represent only about one quarter of the automotive workforce.” (catalyst.org)

Women as a Gender Minority in the Automobile Industry Continued: A few Countries Explored

Women’s inclusion rates in Canada:

Automobile dealers: 21.5%

Motor vehicle manufacturing: 17.7%

Automotive repair and maintenance: 13.1%

Women’s inclusion rates in Europe, manufacture of automobiles:

European Union: 24%

Germany: 18%

France: 17%

Italy: 21%

Sweden: 22%

United Kingdom: 16%

Women’s inclusion rates in the United States: Manufacturing industry: 26.7% Automobile dealers: 21.2% Automotive repair and maintenance: 7.3%

Racial Minorities in the Automobile IndustryRacial minorities in the automobile industry are growing in number on a whole,

however, there is still much work to be done to promote complete equality in the industry.

Racial Minorities in the Automobile Industry Continued: A Few Ethnic Groups Explored

Motor vehicle and motor vehicle parts and supplies merchant wholesalers:Black:15.5%Asian: 6.4%Hispanic or Latino: 13.3%

Automobile dealers:Black: 9.5%Asian: 3.4%Hispanic or Latino: 16.5%

Additional Questions

What are some innovative ideas or steps to getting the automobile industry as a whole to be a completely multicultural organization?

How many years will it take for complete diversification in gender and ethnicity in the automobile industry and in general, all industries around the world?

Thoughts for Solutions

Making sure that all employees are paid based solely on their ability to perform well on their work in the automobile industry, and not paid founded on any basis of their cultural background or gender will result in a more equal and multicultural organization.

Would not it be a wonderful world if people were not judged even in a miniscule way on their gender or ethnicity?

Works Cited

Our Diversity Performance. (n.d.). In Ford Go Further. Retrieved from https://corporate.ford.com/microsites/sustainability-report-2014-15/people-employees-diversity-performance.html

Diversity and Inclusion. (n.d.). In Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Retrieved from http://www.fcagroupcareers.com/OurCulture/DAI/Pages/home.aspx

Noria Corporation. (n.d.). Ford Motor Company recognized for diversity progress. In Reliable Plant. Retrieved from http://www.reliableplant.com/Read/6054/ford-motor-company-recognized-for-diversity-progress

No. 34 | Toyota Motor North America | DiversityInc Top 50. (n.d.). In Diversity Inc. Retrieved from http://www.diversityinc.com/toyota-motor-north-america/

DeCuir-DiNicola, K. (n.d.). Diversity: GM Past, GM Present and GMnext. In Heritage Center. Retrieved from https://history.gmheritagecenter.com/wiki/index.php/Diversity:_GM_Past,_GM_Present_and_GMnext

Women in the Automotive Industry. (2016 , May 9). In Catalyst. Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-automotive-industry

HOUSEHOLD DATA ANNUAL AVERAGES 18. Employed persons by detailed industry, sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. (2016 ). In Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/cps/cpsaat18.htm