The introduction of the members
The first part of the paper requires the introduction of three members of a multicultural work team who are looking for a new workplace. N.N. is a representative of the Muslim diaspora – a migrant from a developing country in Central Asia who moved for better economic conditions. N.N. feels a certain pressure from society, which is not ready to get rid of politically incorrect racial and religious prejudices. M.M. is a young African American with a high sense of racial justice and political activism. The third new member of the multicultural team is Caribbean immigrant L.L. The reason for L.L. to move was low social conditions, a high crime rate in their hometown, and the risk of political persecution. Each of the members of this team seeks to overcome social injustices, which must be taken into account in the process of their assimilation into the work collective.
Measuring the level of assimilation
In order to correctly measure the level of assimilation, that is, cultural acceptance and interaction in the work collective, it is proposed to create a short questionnaire of several points. The first but important research in this direction would be a test for mutual communication, designed to establish how well employees understand each other and are able to overcome the language barrier. In this aspect, observing employees seems to be a reasonable measure since creating artificial interaction situations can cause discomfort.
An important issue is also the problem of cultural understanding. Therefore, in the first place, it is necessary to ask a multicultural collective whether their main national cultural attitudes are not violated or questioned. The next question would be logical to clarify to what extent the culture of the migrant itself prevents them from working if it does so. Accordingly, the question of tolerance towards other cultures, including the American one, should also be raised quite acutely. The question of how great the desire to defend the independence of their culture and the migrant has to be considered in detail.
Results evaluation
Based on the results of the testing and observation of the interactions of the three employees, critical conclusions can be drawn. If a migrant declares a negative perception of other cultures, an unwillingness to tolerate them, then this implies an unwillingness to fit into a team and do a good job. The problem of ethics, in this case, is quite big, and therefore the struggle and rivalry of cultures for domination should be excluded from the work collective. Based on the answer to the presented questionnaire, one can conclude how hostile the worker is to other cultures and how aggressively the struggle of another nationality for cultural independence can manifest itself.
Political activism M.M. demonstrated himself in the testing process as having a humane basis and, at the same time, not violating the atmosphere of the work collective. The employee’s struggle for social justice, on the contrary, demonstrates itself as a positive characteristic required by a member of a multicultural collective. We can say that in this case, the desire for justice is tantamount to the requirement of inclusiveness, which is the main characteristic of modern sabotage of society, at work and outside.
In the case of L.L., the desire for better living conditions and the search for a non-turbulent social environment results in indifference to the issue of cultural inclusion. At the same time, the passivity of a migrant in relation to multiculturalism does not necessarily have to imply intolerance and hostility. Compliance with work ethics for L.L. is above all. Accordingly, the worker is ready to fit into a multicultural team. As for N.N., this migrant from Central Asia showed himself as not ready to fully assimilate. The worker explained his concern about multiculturalism by fear of losing his spiritual connection with his homeland, as well as by worrying about implicit racial hostility towards his nation.
Speaking about the usefulness of demographic data, it should be noted that each nation represented by the three employees has its own immigration background. Migrants from Central Asia are statistically pro-American only if they receive financial or social support (Madanbekova, 2018). M.M. is a member of a racial group that in the twentieth century did not have the opportunity to obtain sufficiently skilled jobs. People who immigrated from countries such as Cuba, Jamaica, and the Dominican Republic make up an impressive ten percent of the part American population yet still are considered to be minorities (Fanfan and Stacciarini, 2020). Based on this demographic information, it can be concluded that each of the national minority groups needs psychological and social support to ensure productivity.
Improving interaction in the work team
Several strategies can be proposed to improve interaction in the work team. First of all, one should attend to the introduction of additional educational classes dedicated to the culture of tolerance and inclusiveness. A series of workshops conducted by professionals in the field of multicultural ethics could have a qualitative impact on the perception of migrants. Expanding this thesis, it must be said that a colossal national program to improve the education of migrants can be a more ambitious strategy. Raising the level of education in a multinational sphere will necessarily underestimate the sense of social injustice associated with poor job quality and wages (Bell, 2017).
The third strategy, in case of ineffectiveness of the previous ones, should be presented in the form of collective therapy. Group therapy can also be additionally implemented through more collective assignments. Realizing the need for collaborative action and the effectiveness of mutual cooperation, each of the team will see such work as much more acceptable. Thus, enhancing the cultural and general education of the multinational collective, as well as the call for continued cooperation, could help overcome differences and create harmony in the collective.
References
Bell, M.P. (2017). Diversity in organizations (3rd ed.). Cengage Learning.
Fanfan, D., and Stacciarini, J.-M. (2020). Social-ecological correlates of acculturative stress among Latina/o and Black Caribbean immigrants in the United States: A scoping review. International Journal of Intercultural Relations, 79, pp. 211-226. Web.
Madanbekova, G. (2018). âAmerica or Russia? Work or study?â: Shifts in social and political attitudes of Central Asians going abroad âa quasi-experimental design in Kyrgyzstan [Master’s Thesis, OSCE Academy]. OSCE Academy in Bishkek.