3 Signs Your Management Staff Need Equality Training

Dr. Ryan Giffen

Equality training has many benefits. It increases the performance of your employees and increases productivity. Your employees and managers will have a more positive working relationship, and the risk of legal action due to discrimination will greatly decrease. It might be hard for you to notice if your management staff needs extra training due to how busy you are. 

However, there are many signs that your managers may need some extra education about equality. A workplace with a strong emphasis on equality will prove to be an extremely strong workplace. During a time where coronavirus has caused so much disarray for many businesses, workplace equality is more important than ever. 

1. Abuse of Authority 

Abuse of power in the workplace means that a manager may be misusing their authority. For example, if a manager is feeling particularly bothered or simply dislikes an employee, they may increase their workload. No employee will feel comfortable after experiencing (or hearing about) a manager who abuses their power. Even if one employee expresses that they feel that a manager has too much power, you should investigate immediately. Your managers may require the aid of leadership training programs or equality training. 

2. Playing Favorites 

If your workplace has an “in-group” and an “out-group,” there may be an issue with managers playing favorites. Many of us remember the cliques in high school and how exclusion felt. While we couldn’t quit high school, your employees can certainly quit working for you.

How can you notice that your managers are playing favorites? You might start by paying closer attention to the way your managers interact with employees. Do they seem friendlier towards some than others? Have they come to you with complaints about an employee that you found unfounded? You might even have employees approach you about feeling excluded or discriminated against. This is a definite sign that you should look into leadership training programs, as well as equality training. Therefore, talk to the managers that seem to play favorites one-on-one and express that your workplace is a strong supporter of equality. If neither of these methods helps, you may want to consider looking for a new manager.

3. Things Aren’t Getting Better

If you have had previous problems with managers about equality that were addressed, but problems are still occurring, you may need to look into equality training. It may not be that your managers are not taking you seriously, it might be that they seriously need the training to understand how important equality and good leadership is in the workplace. If your managers seem to hold a bias against some of your employees, this training could influence them into creating a better relationship with those employees. 

About Dr. Ryan Giffen

With over 20 years of experience, Dr. Ryan Giffen is an expert in human relations and business culture. His career began in hospitality, leading operations and human resource departments for Fortune 500 companies and the like. Not long after, Ryan found his passion for teaching and consulting. He earned a Ph.D. in Hospitality Management with a Human Resources focus from Iowa State University and now works as an assistant professor at California State University, Long Beach. For over a decade, he continues to research and speak on organizational culture, relationship intelligence, and leadership effectiveness. Ryan is also the founder of Inospire, a company helping bosses and employees build stronger relationships with one another.  Lastly, Dr. Giffen is producer and host of the Corporate Shadow Podcast. a show helping everyday employees overcome workplace nonsense.