Creating Inclusion to Leverage Workforce Diversity from a Work Characteristics Perspective

Over the past couple of decades, organisational scholars have been investigating barriers that prevent minorities (e.g. women) from entering and remaining at all levels of organisations. Consequently, the management of workforce diversity and inclusion became a central topic for organisations and research. Despite this attention, our understanding of how diversity shapes the work context in organisations and how these can be translated into an inclusive climate that fosters employees’ performance and well-being is limited. Based on insights of the diversity and inclusion literature and occupational health research, this chapter presents a conceptual framework that suggests that work environments are influenced by the extent of workforce diversity that is present in the organisation (e.g. homogeneous organisations mostly have processes and infrastructures that are developed by and based on the needs of the majority group, minority employees might thus face an unfavourable work context). Moreover, the framework points out that the work context affects employees’ experience of inclusion. The more resourceful one’s work (e.g. the freedom to fulfil task in an authentic way) and the less demanding the work environment (e.g. fewer discrimination), the more one feels an accepted member of their work environment. Higher levels of feeling included is likely to result in better performance and well-being of employees. Finally, the framework proposes that inclusive organisations, in which employees feel good and perform well, will in the long term have more diversity among employees and more gender equality because they attract and retain a diverse workforce.