Introduction
The themes of this essay include the effectiveness of workplace democracy and diversity in the workplace. It begins by describing the Clayton County Library System as a workplace. Besides, the essay also provides a discussion of some selected democratic principles.
The Clayton County Library System
Clayton County Library System is a public library that was established in 1941 with an undertaking to provide the members of the local community with specific learning services. Its services are divided in terms of the ages of its clients: adults, youths, and kids. Due to the rising number of its clients, the library has undergone gradual changes that have enabled it to efficiently serve its clients (Clayton County Library System, n.d).
Democracy within the Clayton County Library System
It is important to note that democratic governance is also practiced within Clayton County Library System. The library has a code of ethics that all individuals, including leaders, are supposed to observe while working in the library. Leaders often engage their followers when important decisions are made. Besides, respect for human rights is emphasized. In this case, the leadership of the library ensures that no one faces any form of discrimination. The library provides different opportunities for everyone within the communities it serves.
The Effectiveness of the Clayton County Library System
Even though democratic governance is good for every organization, having too much of it in a context where competing interests are not many may be counterproductive. In this regard, the level of democracy within the Clayton Library System is just sufficient. Besides, in an organization, leaders are supposed to emphasize situational leadership to deal with different situations that may arise in the course of operations. Based on this, expanding democracy may not allow leaders to take decisive measures in certain situations.
Moreover, certain strategic decision-making processes may not need the input of junior employees or leaders. In such a scenario, only a few top executive officials of the library participate in making decisions. Accordingly, this is not consistent with the principles of democracy.
The Sustainability of Democracy in the Workplace
Democracy is sustainable in the workplace up to a certain level; the reason is that leaders may want to exercise different styles of leadership (DuBrin, 2012; Lally, 2008). Some styles of leadership may appear repressive and inconsistent with some of the democratic principles (Bonnici, 2011). For instance, an authoritative form of leadership is always coercive and focuses on the ultimate goal of an organization (Bonnici, 2011); about this, a leader is never interested in building consensus, which is a crucial component of democratic leadership (Kendall, 2011). In light of this, democracy can only thrive as long as individuals respect universally recognized human rights (Grodsky, 2012). In addition, different leaders come with different leadership styles. Because of this, there may be organizational changes due to varying leadership styles, some of which may not conform to the ideals of democracy (Grodsky, 2012).
The Selected Democratic Principles
There are three selected democratic principles: the principles of accountability, human rights, and participatory decision-making processes. The principle of accountability requires that every official becomes responsible and accountable for their actions and decisions (Lewin, 2007; Steets, 2010). Transparency is an important element of accountability (Ezenyili, 2012). Concerning this, accountability requires that every leader’s decisions and actions become open to scrutiny and any constructive criticism (Ezenyili, 2012).
About the principle of human rights, it is worth noting that democracy recognizes that every individual is naturally endowed with certain basic human rights that cannot be taken away by the government or any other authority (Box, 2007). The rights include liberty, the pursuit of happiness, and life. The last principle is that of participatory decision-making processes (Box, 2007). This democratic principle requires that everybody is involved in a decision-making process. A common approach to the participatory decision-making process is known as a consensus (Box, 2007).
Diversity and the Promotion of Democratic Principles
Workplace diversity may be defined as the variety of differences between individuals working within an organization. It entails ethnicity, race, gender, personality, educational background, and tenure among others (Kurki, 2013). There is a relationship between workplace diversity and different democratic principles (Kurki, 2013). It is important to look at the relationship between diversity and the selected three principles. Concerning a participative decision-making initiative, diversity enables an organization to benefit from diverse opinions and flexible ideas from employees with different backgrounds (Kurki, 2013). A participative decision-making process becomes effective when individuals making contributions are diverse; this is only possible with diversity (Kurki, 2013).
There is also a relationship between diversity and the principle of human rights. Equality is a component of human rights in the sense that individuals cannot be said to have certain rights without the guarantee of equality. Within the workplace, everybody is considered equal in terms of opportunities (Wolff, 2010).
Diversity relates to accountability in terms of management. An organization can set a strong example concerning workplace diversity, which can be achieved by formulating policies that make leaders accountable for enhancing inclusion (Wolff, 2010). For instance, an organization may hire managers based on their achievements and show employees that ethnicity, gender, religion, and other forms of diversities do not influence the hiring or promotion process (Wolff, 2010).
Conclusion
Diversity in the workplace helps in promoting democratic principles in several ways. One of the insights that can be drawn from the analysis is that ensuring diversity in the workplace fosters the spirit of participation. Besides, diversity in the workplace makes it possible for employees to respect the backgrounds of their fellow workers.
References
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