Workplace Inclusivity Report

This report explores the issue of workplace discrimination in Pakistan, specifically focusing on gender and religious discrimination. It examines the societal and legal factors contributing to these problems and analyzes their impact on employee morale, productivity, and overall workplace culture. The report concludes with recommendations for HR departments to promote inclusivity and create a more equitable work environment.

THE FIGHT FOR INCLUSIVITY WITHIN A WORKPLACE
The Human Resource department plays an integral part in the administrative function of any
organization. An HR department is responsible for defining the rules, regulations, and the
responsibilities of the employees within an organization. Members of the HR department are
involved in every major activity in an organization- attracting suitable candidates through
carefully designed job descriptions and ads, recruiting and selecting the most suitable individual,
and consulting in strategic planning are just some of their roles.
We know that Human Resource managers play a huge part in an organization but like any other
department, they face various dilemmas. These dilemmas may range from keeping a check on
employees without breach of their privacy, to misrepresentation of requirements of an open
position that is thought to be difficult to fill.
However, this report will be discussing one of the most recurring dilemmas around the globe;
workplace discrimination which is based on gender, and varied religious beliefs.
In an organization where the environment is not very welcoming or inclusive, an individual that
is not from the same religion, ethnicity or ability, may feel like an outcast. This may cause an
employee to double guess all their decisions, preventing them from speaking up and sharing their
ideas, which will ultimately affect organization, along with the emotional and mental wellbeing
of the employee. These factors ultimately lead to a hostile environment at the workplace.
For instance, in an organization consisting mainly of middle-class male Muslim employees, a
Christian female belonging to the lower class would feel shunned from most of the interactions
due to cultural, religious, economic, and gender-based differences.
Unfortunately, individuals within the Pakistani society tend to consider themselves superior on
the basis of their gender, religion, and economic standing. In a patriarchal society, gender-based
superiority gives rise to inequality, hostility, and harassment in the workplace.
As per the book, the HR manager is to be primarily blamed for the unfavorable workplace
environment. The individual holding this authority should be aware of their set of
responsibilities, and carry out their tasks with efficiency. It is also their task to ensure that neither
they nor anyone else is exploiting their authority for the worse.
All across Pakistan, firms have their own corporate cultures. Firms follow a set of rules,
regulations, and policies which are customized to satisfy their long-term goals. In order to create
an inclusive corporate culture, the HR department needs to be led by an individual who will
adhere to the set rules, laws, and acknowledge and tackle any factors which corrupt the corporate
culture.
For decades, gender and religion based discrimination has been a prevailing issue both in Public
and Private sectors of Pakistan and various other countries. Previously these issues were not
taken into much consideration in Pakistan due to the suppression of women and minorities.
Women have feared that due to local social norms they may not be able to work in male
dominated organizations, and their say on the matter will be ignored.

In the past women have been discriminated against openly, due to which they were not assigned
major positions in workplaces. On the Basic Pay Scale (BPS) for Government Employees in
Pakistan, a majority of women were placed at the bottom of the scale in terms of getting jobs
with decent salaries.
The following table (1.1) shows how in 2005, a very small number of women were given jobs
over all, and almost none on the higher end of the scale for good salaries.
At the 22nd level, which is the highest, all ten major posts were given to men and not a single
one of them was given to any female.
Even on the 21st scale, this ratio didn’t increase to a greater number instead out of 50 seats 47
belonged to men while only 3 were given to females. These differences occur worldwide and are
deeply concerning. According to Dr Bettina Burkhardt, a representative for gender equality at
Deutsche Welle, women working in Germany earn 23 percent less than men despite being more
efficient in their relevant fields.
Along with this, a key issue faced by employees face within organizations is the religious
discrimination. Pakistan has been a discriminatory law enforcer in the eyes of the world, not only
within a professional capacity but also on a national level. Religious discrimination has been a
source of physical as well as mental damage to various individuals.
There exist organizations within Pakistan that allow people of other religions and ethnicities to
reach only a certain level within the hierarchy of an organization. Which means, individuals from
different religions or sects cannot be promoted. However, organizations are trying and improving
inclusivity and reducing discrimination. Due to the steps which are taken to control these
problems, more and more organizations are starting to adapt to this change. They have begun to
realize the fact that the focus must be talent rather than gender, ethnicity, or physical abilities.

HR departments constantly struggle while dealing with employee matters in an appropriate
manner. The sensitive issue of discrimination against women on the basis of gender, and against
religious minorities contaminate the culture of a workplace. In relation to this, various pay-
related issues come to face, and the unwelcoming environment makes survival tough in a
workplace. Nevertheless, individuals are forced to work in unfavorable environments due to
lower job opportunities. This inevitably leads to a fall in productivity due to low employee
morale and motivation.
To have a closer look at the matter on hand, the report sheds light on the treatment of women in a
Pakistani workplace. A woman faces much more scrutiny and is subjected to harsher judgment
under various circumstances. A research conducted at Harvard Business School found out that
female financial advisors are 20% more likely to be fired for misconduct as compared to their
male counterpart, while being 30% less likely to find another job as well. This punishment gap is
further fueled by the fact that Pakistan is still a developing country, and the society is dominated
heavily by men.
Women are scandalized for simply existing comfortably alongside men, it is further frowned
upon if a woman stands next to a man shoulder to shoulder in an office environment. A blog
published in World Bank Blogs highlighted the prevalent mindset amongst men- free mixing of
the sexes is an idea that exists for modern workplaces, but can lead to problems in our culture.
This serves as a great obstacle for women who are in the workplace, and they have to be much
more aware of their behavior, their work, and their actions to direct the attention of everyone
towards their work instead of unfound scandals.
To add on further, even if women manage to avoid the issues mentioned above- a glaring pay
gap is present commonly amongst the male and female employees of a workplace. This pay gap
stems from the reality that women are often paid less for their jobs in a workplace. ILO in
Pakistan published a Global Wage Report for the years 2018/19, this report states that on average
women earn 20% less than men. When talking about Pakistan, the report states that Pakistan has
the highest overall hourly average (mean) gender pay gap from the 73 countries which were used
for the research. The overall gender pay gap in Pakistan lies at 34% which is more than double of
the global average. Commonly, pay and grading systems are based on male skills models and
undervalue communication and other soft skills, which gives rise to more problems.
The research also highlights the issue of a motherhood gap, under which mothers earn less than
other women. This is further touched upon in an article published in DAWN newspaper. 51% of
the respondents of their online survey stated that they would be uncomfortable sharing the fact
that they’re pregnant at their workplace. This is due to the fact that firms often look at female
employees as an added expense and headache in the case of a pregnancy. Adding on to this in the
survey, Naz, a 30 year old woman who worked at a law firm stated, “I haven’t told them that I
am pregnant because I’m anxious my [expected salary] raise won’t come through if my boss
finds out.”

It is to be noted that firms are often stingy with maternity leaves, or employees are fired after this
news is spread. They are harshly placed under a microscope, where their ability to get tasks done
are questioned deeply, and they are not given any major responsibilities from that point onwards.
The Constitution of Pakistan assures protection against discrimination of religion, race, caste,
gender and seeks to provide equal opportunities to all its citizens. Moreover, there are several
bills pertaining to the rights of women however most of these were written in a time where
women in a place of work were frowned upon. Not to say that this isn't the case anymore but to
illustrate the backwards ideologies that still somewhat persist through time.
Perhaps the biggest example of such outdated bills can be seen in the “The West Pakistan
Maternity Benefit Ordinance” drafted in 1958. This bill allowed pregnant women paid maternity
leave on account for more than four months within a company. However, with laxed
enforcement and an outlandish 500 rupees penalty even three month paid maternity leave is
considered a luxury. Even recent bills and precautions such as when Asif Ali Zardari came into
office and passed the ‘Protection against Harassment of Women at Workplace Bill 2010’ which
was even updated in 2014 has limited checks and balances and even more sporadic workplace
implementation, which inevitably leads to abuse of the law.
While discrimination against women is a issue of great concern, this is not the only form of
discrimination occurring in Pakistani workplaces. A pressing issue lies in the discrimination
against minorities- particularly against individuals who belong to religions other than Islam, and
hold varied beliefs and values.
At an initial glance it appears that Pakistan is all about inclusivity. The flag of the country is
made of the colors white and green- where white serves as a representation of the minorities
within the country. From the start of time, Pakistan was supposed to be a safe place for
individuals of all beliefs to practice their ideologies with confidence.
Shockingly, there has been a rise in intolerance among individuals in recent times. Throughout
history, religion has been used as a weapon to satisfy personal vendettas and have the upper hand
in any conflict. The population of Pakistan consists majorly of Muslims- under which 75-95%
are Sunni Muslims. The rest of the population is made up of minority Muslim sects, Christians,
Hindus, Jews, and Ahmedis- who are no longer considered Muslims due to their beliefs
regarding prophet hood. This glaringly large number allows this group of people to have the
upper hand in most areas around the country- and, corporations are no different.
It is often observed that an individual needs to be a Muslim in order to be eligible for given job.
While a quota system was introduced in General Zia Ul Haq’s time, in which 5% of jobs within
the public sector were reserved for minorities. The problem occurred when these employees
belonging to a minority were appointed to unfavorable tasks- mainly sanitation. However, in
2018, the Islamabad High Court made a declaration of faith mandatory to be able to join the
armed forces, judiciary, and the civil services. This is a requirement for government and semi
government jobs.

This problem was further fueled by the most recent government. In 2018, various Islamic
pressure groups opposed the appointment of Atif Mian in the Economic Advisory Council. The
state once again satisfied the discriminatory ideologies, and Mian was swiftly removed from the
council within a week.
This leaves us with the private sector. Under this sector, firms have the freedom and ability to
conjure a culture which is suitable to their future goals and is accommodating for the employees.
While these firms could be following a path which is friendlier towards minorities, it is often
observed that HR managers fail to accommodate all individuals due to their limited perception of
minorities.
The first issue lies in the minorities feeling alienated from the majority of employees. The
religious unrest creates a feeling of uncertainty and fear among individuals to express themselves
freely. They are often looked down upon, and mocked for their varied beliefs. Minorities in a
workplace tend to be timid as they can be an easy target for seniors, and fellow employees. The
minorities are often given crude nickname and their beliefs that don’t align with Muslim
ideologies are mocked.
This reality stares back in the case of Parmala Ravi Shankar, who quit her job at a multinational
firm once the manager asked her to not share the same utensils as the rest of the employees. Acts
such as these raise the question- are these individuals not human beings?
More workplace issues stem from the vague blasphemy laws which are prevalent in the country.
The Pakistan Penal Code punishes blasphemy against any religion, and this act is even
punishable by death in some cases. While the law states that all religions are protected, this is
mainly abused by Muslims who are vengeful against certain individuals. This leads to employees
being extremely cautious of what they are to say in a workplace environment, as anyone could
misuse what they’ve said. An incident of this nature is highlighted in the much talked about case
of Asia Bibi, who was accused of blasphemy after a minor dispute with coworkers.
The cases and reality discussed above shed light on the need for HR departments to work
consistently towards creating an environment which is friendly for the employees. There are
multiple laws that were made by the government for prevention of workplace discrimination, as
mentioned above. Workplace discrimination in Pakistan is most heavily situated within the
confines of religion, and sex and undoubtedly require lawful reforms to eliminate over time.
To move forward, this report will now be discussing the suggestions and recommendations may
provide some ease in fighting for workplace inclusivity.
First and foremost, it is of utmost importance to clearly not only dictate strict HR policy
regarding harassment in alignment to the latest local law regarding workplace discrimination but
also to maintain organizational cultural expectations to make employees feel welcome. HR needs
to be actively involved in the enforcement of culture and policy as they bridge the gap between
actual law and its implementation. The fear and uncertainty while confessing and confronting
issues of workplace discrimination all sprout from unclear directions and lax employment of

policy. This should help not only people come and confront issues more easily but for HR to
patrol such claims much more efficiently.
Secondly, in lieu of strict policy, there should also be mandatory employee training to not only
enforce good work ethics between diverse workplaces but to also help develop managers that are
responsible for discrimination prevention. In this way the organization shares combined
responsibility towards prevention rather than a “policing” activity. Through employee training
we can also focus on the crux of workplace discrimination - Employee Ideologies. In Pakistan,
most workplace discrimination is rooted in misconstrued gender roles and/or religious ideals as
discussed previously. Through this path we tackle the problem head on to help employees forego
any misplaced ideologies and develop interpersonal relations.
The promotion of equality within a workplace may seem like some long elaborate workers’
rights plan. However, there’s several business specific reasons and boosts to want to support
workplace equality. “It turns out that advancing equal opportunity and economic empowerment
is both morally right and good economics, because discrimination, poverty and ignorance restrict
growth.” - Bill Clinton, former US president. The fact of the matter is workers that feel valued
are overall a lot more productive and easily retainable. Not only that, a functional diverse
workplace helps promote new ideas and enhance corporate reputation for good corporate social
responsibility.
Finally, the report above sheds ample light on the continuous matter of discrimination in the
workplace. It is a long battle for individuals who are singled out on the basis of their different
characteristics, but HR managers can ensure gradual reforms which enrich the culture of a firm.
These issues of discrimination are rooted deeply in the culture of Pakistan. However, an open
conversation regarding these matters, and discussion on possible remedies creates space for
improvement.

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