Aotearoa’s diversity: Thriving or on life support?

Jarrod Haar, Dean’s Chair and Professor of Management and Māori Business at Massey University, offers insights on how well New Zealand employers are doing with diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) and what could make a difference.

DEI comprises closely aligned values that acknowledge the world of work has become exceptionally varied: more genders, different races, ethnicities, religions, abilities and sexual orientations. DEI is typified or represented by organisations doing their best to support all these differences. Indeed, HRNZ offers resources on DEI I have been surveying the New Zealand workforce at least twice a year since 2020 (roughly 1,000 employees per survey). My opinion represents interpreting the data, not my personal experiences. Overall, in answer to my title question, the data suggests Aotearoa New Zealand employers are not doing a great job of DEI. It is indeed more on ‘life support’ than ‘thriving’.

Recognising the good

First off, some employers are doing great! DEI is probably very well managed and supported across a quarter of employers in Aotearoa New Zealand, and they are probably struggling with challenges, too. DEI is complex. Employees are complex, and, yes, COVID-19 has made the whole world of work more complex and challenging. But are we really that bad?

Māori and Pacific employees who reported greater perceived discrimination were more likely to suffer poorer mental health, higher job stress, and anxiety and depression related to their job.

What would thriving look like?

Well, all employees – irrespective of gender, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation and abilities – feel genuinely supported and able to bring their genuine selves to work. That is what inclusion is all about. It’s about feeling like you belong in the workplace while being able to bring your unique characteristics with you: whether cultural (acknowledging te ao Māori or the Māori worldview) or through the use of pronouns or simply not being discriminated against because of your gender, ethnicity or religion.

What research tells us

But the evidence is not good. I recently published a study (from one of these surveys) on the perceived discrimination at work with a large group of Māori and Pacific employees (585 respondents). Perceived discrimination relates to an employee’s perception of being treated differently because of being an outsider (eg, ethnicity, religion). Importantly, Māori and Pacific employees who reported greater perceived discrimination were more likely to suffer poorer mental health, higher job stress, and anxiety and depression related to their job. It also reduced their job satisfaction and engagement; two critical factors with strong links to job performance and retention. Want a better performing and healthier workforce of minority workers? Then ensure that DEI is working!

The analysis also showed only 6.4 per cent of Māori employees and 4.1 per cent of Pacific employees reported no discrimination whatsoever. Given such a high rate of discrimination, I am struggling to see where good DEI is in these workers’ experiences. Overall, the data shows widespread discrimination towards Māori and Pacific employees. The one silver lining with an overall low mean score though, is it means the experiences are widely shared, but, thankfully, not too many workers experience discrimination too frequently. The analysis of discrimination towards outcomes, however, shows this doesn’t matter, it strongly affects their wellbeing and how they feel about work.

One caveat you might be thinking of is that this is a one-off experience.

Alas no. Beyond more data showing similar effects, a past master’s student of mine did a study of perceived discrimination in the workforce focusing on Muslims, which included a range of ethnicities, including Pākehā. The effects were strikingly similar, including 4.1 per cent of Muslim respondents reporting no discrimination at all. Again, discrimination experiences were wide but (thankfully) not too deep on average. Again, these experiences reduced job satisfaction and commitment, and increased turnover intentions. Similarly, these experiences are linked to poor wellbeing.

Lessons to learn

Combined, what do these experiences tell us? Being different – your ethnicity and your religion –appears to lead to strong detrimental reactions in the workplace. For Māori and Pacific employees, the most common discrimination actions are ‘people making jokes or negative commentaries about people of my ethnic background’. But that group and the Muslim study showed the other common forms of discrimination were ‘being pressured to assimilate’ and ‘having stereotypes about my culture/ ethnic group/religion and being treated like they were true’. All these types of behaviour and experiences illustrate no inclusion. You do not belong, and your uniqueness is an impediment. You need to change to belong (the assimilation comments). These are critical issues that need improving.

Want a better performing and healthier workforce of minority workers? Then ensure that DEI is working!

Stats NZ forecasts that the population of New Zealand will grow and change, with fewer Pākehā (New Zealand Europeans) and more minorities, especially Māori, Pacific peoples and Asian. Thus, the groups that appear to be suffering in New Zealand workplace experiences around discrimination are going to be more dominant and more important as the workforce of the future.

Does DEI have any place here?

Clearly, DEI is not only needed but vital. This data suggests, however, that the workplace experiences of the people that DEI is supposed to support and address are not being done adequately. The evidence does show that organisations and supervisors who are supportive of these minority employees do buffer the detrimental influences of discrimination on outcomes.

But we need to be doing more and a lot better, if we are to have a genuine thriving DEI culture in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite my suggestion earlier that a quarter of businesses might be doing a good and supportive job around DEI, note the frequency of discrimination experiences. Roughly 95 per cent of these workers have experienced this in the past month. Where are the top DEI organisations? The reality is they are there, but it’s their workforce – and likely customers too – that are the root cause. This leads us to the implications of this all.

We need to change workers’ attitudes of ‘we’re only having a laugh’ by making them understand that identifying someone as different and, thus, not belonging in the workplace, is the antithesis of inclusion.

HR’s role

Understanding workers’ discrimination experiences is essential. Beyond requirements for safe workplaces and being Tiriti o Waitangi (Treaty of Waitangi) partners, organisations are critical to enacting genuine inclusion. This data suggests there is a long way to go.

HR needs to take stock of the workplace experiences around discrimination. This includes discrimination not only by ethnicity and religion but by gender. I suspect sexual harassment experiences are likely to be similar to those found around ethnicity and religion. HR teams are encouraged to get baseline data from within their organisations of these experiences and then work with leaders – perhaps through KPI targets – to encourage safer places to work for all.

Being different – your ethnicity and your religion – appears to lead to strong detrimental reactions in the workplace.

HR can also look to highperformance HR practices that might include training and development opportunities for managers and employees around understanding DEI and the importance of discrimination-free workplaces. We need to change workers’ attitudes of ‘we’re only having a laugh’ by making them understand that identifying someone as different and, thus, not belonging in the workplace, is the antithesis of inclusion.

The research shows organisations and leaders play a crucial role here. Calling out inappropriate behaviour and encouraging a climate where workers can share experiences around discrimination are likely to be significant. Does HR need to discipline every occurrence? Likely not, but reiterating the importance of genuine DEI and supporting all workers are vital, as is recognising that those employees working against DEI are working against the organisation and its performance. For those individuals who do not respond and modify their behaviour, HR does need to be proactive and discipline such behaviour. It not only supports those workers being discriminated against, and their wellbeing, but creates a genuine climate of inclusion. Remember, high-inclusion climates will benefit all workers, including Pākehā and males. Most workers want to work in a place where everyone gets along and everyone feels supported. Alas, Aotearoa New Zealand workplaces have a long way to go. Kia kaha!

Professor Jarrod Haar (PhD) is the Dean’s Chair and Professor of Management and Māori Business at Massey University and has tribal affiliations with Ngati Maniapoto and Ngati Mahuta. His research approach spans a broad range of management topics, with a strong focus on Human Resource Management and Organisational Behaviour. In particular: (1) how employees manage their work, family and life roles such as work–life balance; (2) the role of cultural factors in the workplace (especially for Māori) and mātauranga Māori in business; (3) team functioning and its influence on team member wellbeing and job outcomes; (4) leadership and its influence on followers; and (5) innovation and entrepreneurship.