The influence of workplace diversity on employee performance : a case study of the electricity division at eThekwinI Municipality

Abstract

Internationally, companies are constantly looking for better ways to gain an edge over their competitors. Part of their competitive strategies involve upskilling human capital in order to enhance their performance, thus achieving increased financial gains through improved organisational performance. This study aimed to illustrate the influence of workplace diversity on employee performance. Firstly, the study investigated the existence of a relationship between workplace diversity and employee performance. Secondly, it explored the extent to which the diversity aspects examined in this study relate to employee performance. Thirdly, it sought to establish employees’ perspectives on whether the municipality has employed a diverse workforce for legislative compliance or for organisational benefit. A quantitative research methodology was adopted in this study. The workplace diversity and employee performance survey questionnaires were distributed to 200 eThekwini Municipality employees in the Electricity department. The participation of respondents for this study was purely voluntary and participants were assured of anonymity and confidentiality. The data was analysed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences software. The findings revealed an existing general relationship between workplace diversity and employee performance. Education diversity and ethnicity diversity showed a significant relationship with employee performance, while age and gender proved less impactful on employee performance. The municipality should prioritise two components of diversity, namely ethnicity and education, which have been shown to have a significant association with employee performance when designing strategies to manage diversity. Consequently, the municipality may achieve improved performance, which will ultimately result in better service delivery. It is necessary for the municipality to incorporate diversity management within its affirmative action policy in order to formalise and score the municipality's effectiveness in training and managing diversity at work.