Funeral Service is no Place for “isms”

By Alice Adams on 07/04 at 06:54 PM

Without a doubt – this country and Texas in particular – has become the proverbial “melting pot” for every race, religion, creed and lifestyle.  Further, people living in this country, for various reasons face hardships in their lives, not because they lack talent but because others are often limited by their biases.

Since you, as a funeral director, serve all races, creeds, colors, religions and lifestyles, there’s no place for these crippling biases…and one of the main reasons is because when a firm shows any evidence of racism, sexism and other "isms," everyone loses.

 

But don’t rule out the human factor.  We all have our personal racial and other stereotypes. They are burned in our brains permanently, like the information on a CD. These stereotypes form at a very early age and are often reinforced by our parents, teachers, friends, classmates, the news media, the entertainment industry and from personal experiences.

 

It’s human nature and unavoidable to make unfair generalizations about others based on their race.

 

For example, the other day a grandchild commented as she watched the TV show, “So You Think You Can Dance”:  “Grandma, how come the black boys are better dancers than the white boys?”  The grandmother carefully pointed out that not ALL black boys can dance and not ALL white boys are bad dancers…but in simple, innocent moments like these, stereotypes are created.

 

Of course, you’ll never really be able to erase the "stereotypes" you’ve formed through the years. Think of that CD again—it’s already recorded there.

 

But you can train yourself to be more mindful of how those stereotypical beliefs affect your daily actions, reactions and decision making.

 

Here’s the good news:  You can learn how to manage your biases. You can become more aware of your gut reactions to people who are different from you, and you can question those reactions, knowing they likely are based on long-standing stereotypes and biased images.

 

A major focus of diversity training in your firm is helping co-workers and colleagues understand and manage their biases—because we know we can’t completely erase them.

Three Ways Stereotypes Can Affect Your Business
Making assumptions about people based on their race, religion or lifestyle choices can have a significant effect on workplace culture and productivity. Here are some reasons:

• It cuts off opportunities for growth and competition. If you, or your employees, brand someone based on that person’s race, gender, religion, size or age, you won’t be able to take advantage of those different and potentially valuable approaches to a problem or task. Tapping diverse viewpoints and styles drives innovative problem solving and learning.

• Biases and stereotypes create low morale and low retention. A workplace infected with racist, sexist, ageist, classist, homophobic and other biases is a place where nobody wants to work. Gay and lesbian funeral service professionals, as an example, cite workplace unfairness as the only reason they leave their employers -- almost twice as often as heterosexual white males. Having an intolerant culture makes the workplace a roller coaster of instability.

• Biases and stereotypes lead to poor productivity. When racism, sexism and other isms are rampant in a firm, people will not team up, communicate or consult about important tasks that require collaboration. These “isms” also force people with different working styles, experience and viewpoints to bend to the will of the majority rather than expanding their skills and talents.

Ways to Spot Bias at Your Firm
Bias isn’t simply defining people by the way they look. It’s also about limiting the incredible wealth of perspectives, backgrounds, ideas, skills, talents, problem-solving styles and creativity that are in your talent pool. Thinking of diversity this way opens up new ways to talk about changing the workplace culture. Here are some common signs that could signal the existence of isms in your firm:

• When diversity and inclusion workshops are offered as occasional extracurricular activities, the practice demonstrates a lack of organizational commitment to cultural competency. Diversity and inclusion should be policy, not an extra that’s subject to cost cutting.

• Chronic absenteeism or high turnover rates. Are women constantly quitting? Low retention among certain groups could be a red flag that your firm needs to do more to reach out to and include valuable employees.

• Poor performance. Performance problems are often blamed on people rather than on organizational structures, systems and ways of doing things—that is, the organization’s culture. Poor employee performance can also result from factors such as stress, exclusion and lack of opportunity.

• A dominant decision-making style. Is risk-taking discouraged? Have employees been given the message "It’s our way or the highway"? A single way to get things done may seem to be efficient management, but it both discourages multiple perspectives and styles and leaves exceptional talent and ideas untapped.

• Homogenous leadership. Is your management all male or all white or Hispanic? Organizations that truly value diversity and inclusion practice what they preach. If the same people are getting passed over for promotion, cultural competence may be a problem at the top.

• Seemingly innocent racist, sexist, ageist or other insensitive jokes are a sign that the company culture tolerates disrespectful behavior. The use of mascots, symbols or holiday celebrations that exclude certain groups is another sign. Such everyday conversations and activities can unwittingly hurt co-workers.

• Not using diverse suppliers. Companies that are truly committed to building a diverse and inclusive organization in order to be innovative and competitive will also seek out diverse suppliers.

Becoming aware of your firm’s underlying biases is a good first step. The next step is to extend this awareness and engage your employees in the strengths of diversity through diversity conversations.

 

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