Even if you're not a fan of reality television, you'll no doubt have heard about the recent international race row sparked by the behaviour of certain contestants on Celebrity Big Brother. It is ironic that a furore over alleged racist bullying dominated the headlines at the start of the European Year of Equal Opportunities for All.
The media frenzy demonstrated just how sensitive issues such as racism and discrimination are. And with the influx of foreign nationals into Ireland in recent years, Irish employers are now faced with the challenges that come with a diverse workforce.
While the Republic has the most extensive employment equality legislation in Europe, outlawing discrimination on nine grounds including age, race, religion and disability, discrimination still persists.
"We've seen quite significant levels of allegations of discrimination being brought forward by migrant workers, by older workers, by women and by people with disabilities in particular," says Niall Crowley, chief executive of the Equality Authority.
In relation to migrant workers, he says that a broad range of issues has emerged, including "allegations of discrimination in access to jobs, allegations of racial harassment, allegations of unequal working conditions or unequal pay".
"A lot of our affiliate trade unions would bring forward stories of discrimination," agrees David Joyce of Ictu, the umbrella body for Irish trade unions.
Joyce says that, in some sectors, the minimum wage is viewed by employers as the default pay level for migrant workers. "Our concern would be that if we do create a two-tier labour market, you're really just storing up problems in relation to racism and social tensions into the future," he says.
Managing diversity in the workplace involves more than complying with legislation, preventing employee allegations or simply being politically correct.
There are real business benefits to be gained from taking a strategic approach to integrating people into an organisation.
"Diversity is a source of creativity if effectively managed," says Crowley. "People coming from different experiences . . . can bring new perspectives to addressing challenges in the workplace."
Considering the labour shortages in many sectors of the economy, reaching out to the full diversity of the market is an important source of staff.
Research carried out by the Equality Authority has found a strong link between companies with an equality policy in place and high levels of job satisfaction and commitment to the organisation.
Tony Donohue of employers' group Ibec says that while many companies have an equal opportunities policy in place, very few have gone that extra step and "embedded strategic diversity management" into their business.
"We see a lot of business benefits to this approach," he says. "It's positive for staff morale, it's positive for recruitment and retention of staff . . . Also, it enhances public image."
While it can be challenging to put a diversity management programme in place, companies such as O2 have proved that it makes good business sense.
O2 Ireland has implemented a wide range of initiatives to integrate foreign nationals and people with disabilities.
Foreign nationals make up about 6.5 per cent of O2 Ireland's workforce, and a target has been set to increase this to 10 per cent.
"Ten per cent of the population in Ireland are non-Irish nationals, so we want to try and mirror what's happening in the entire marketplace," says Theresa Murray, human resources director at O2 Ireland.
"Our people are proud that we're taking a stand on this and that we're proactively going out and stating that we want to be a diverse workforce," says Murray. "Also, it helps us because a lot of our customers are diverse."
With this strategy in mind, is it a coincidence that O2 Ireland was named "best company to work for in Ireland" last year by the Great Place to Work Institute?
