Being Different Together: Case Studies on Diversity Interventions in Some South African Organisations

Abstract:: There are few contexts where people are not confronted by difference in the workplace, in organisations and public spaces, and as an aspect of the general body politic. The challenge, therefore, is how to value what different groups may bring to the collective while, at the same time, maintaining cohesive societies. Contemporary South Africa is no exception in facing realities such as these although the specific contours that the challenges take are obviously shaped by South Africa's history, its socioeconomic capacities, and the particular demographics that form its population. Widespread legislative reform has attempted to redress stratification along a number of axes of difference. Employment equity measures such as affirmative action which were conceptualised in countries like the USA were designed to introduce a representative number from minority groups into relatively homogenous organisations. The changes envisioned for South African organisations are of a different order in this country where the majority demographic has to be brought into the centre politically, economically, and organisationally - a fundamental transformation in processes, structures, identities and relationships. The case studies that are presented here are a reminder of this sometimes volatile transformation of South African life where new opportunities and challenges often come into conflict with old mindsets and practices.

Consolidated Report of DEISA Case Studies

Abstract:: Diversity and Equity Interventions in South Africa (DEISA) was a research programme that studied the transformation industry in South Africa, exploring issues such as the kinds of interventions being undertaken under the rubric of diversity and equity, how these are experienced by people working in organisations, the theoretical frameworks used by practitioner,s and especially how they may or may not articulate with the quest for social justice in a democratising South Africa. The project examined 1) a questionnaire submitted to diversity practitioners across South Africa and 2) diversity interventions conducted at 12 South African organisations. These organisations included government institutions and private sector companies and ranged from multinationals to small family-owned concerns. They were situated mostly in the two major hubs of the South African economy, Gauteng and Cape Town. Two studies were in other regions of the country, Mpumalanga and North West Province.