A normative model for managing the diversity awareness of local government managers

Abstract

One of the most challenging tasks confronting local government managers is to resolve, or at least ameliorate, some of the difficulties arising from the wide diversity found in the workplace. Although local government went through a process of transformation to ensure that it was more representative of the broader diverse community, it was merely an exercise in structural change. Structural change should not be the only mechanism of the current government to bring about change in the workplace. The management of change and affirmative action programmes alone will not obtain the employment equity workers are seeking. The management of diversity is needed to create employment equity in the workplace – a workplace encompassing everyone. Appropriate techniques for handling diversity must be found. These will have to become integral to the whole environment’s accepting diverse groups as vital resources in an organisation. The focus should also be on behavioural change, especially that of individuals and groups in the organisation (public sector). A balance is needed for structural as well as behavioural change with regard to diversity in the workplace.The ultimate aim in the democratisation and transformation of local government in South Africa is not to widen the rift between the various groups, but to foster understanding between them, thereby streamlining local government and enhancing its efficiency through service delivery.