It is compulsory for every organization to comply with the employment law for the protection of the rights of the employees and to ensure that the employers meet their obligations and responsibilities (Clarkson, Miller & Cross, 2014). Employees need to have equal pay and opportunities for growth and development. They should also maintain healthy well-being as well as safety and ensuring workplace diversity to promote equality among the employees. The employers must also ensure that the job advertisement in the organization adheres to the provisions of the employment laws and is free from any form of discrimination against any individual. In addition to complying with the employment law, the employers must strategize on how to implement the best approach to diversity as the employees are from different backgrounds and may tend to differ in opinion or significant decisions in the organization (Clarkson et al., 2014). It is, therefore, necessary to have the most appropriate way of handling a diverse workforce. An example of a company that strives to comply with the employment law as well as having a suitable approach to diversity is Nike Company.

Analyzing Context of Advertisement

Nike Company advertised for the position of Retail Department Manager in Vancouver Store. The advertisement first describes the kind of employees that Nike wants to have on board and that include creative people (Nike Inc., 2019). In as much as Nike would want to employ only creative individuals for the position, it might be challenging for some since creativity evolve with time and given the opportunity to explore the surrounding environment, a person will become creative over time. They will understand how to solve various challenges presented to them for the benefit of the organization as well as their personal development.  The advertisement also describes Nike as one of the best brands in the word.

The chosen language contains elements of bias since, the employees should review other brands and compare with Nike to find out if it is the best without being forced to accept that its brand image (Nike Inc., 2019).  Nike might be the best brand, but the employees need to experience it at a personal level and generate their answers later. The provided location in Vancouver yet other potential candidates might also be willing to work at Nike, but it has the job opportunity in a specific area. Nike refers to the employees in the advertised position as Coach, and that creates a friendly working environment for employees (Nike Inc., 2019). The potential candidates understand that there is a mutual relationship between the employees and the managers. They, therefore, learn various activities as a unit to enable them to become successful. The advertisement is chronological and easy to understand, and the potential candidate applying for the job does not have a difficult task of reading everything.

The employment law on the wages and working hour requires that the employees should receive the minimum wage and the overtime payment upon working on weekends, past the regular workday hour which is in the evening and even during the holidays. The job advertisement, however, states that the potential candidates should work overtime when the management requires them to work (Clarkson et al., 2014). It appears as if the employees do not have the right to choose to work overtime or not as long as the management has called upon them to work regardless of the working hours. The employment law recommends that the employees for 10 hours in a day (Clarkson et al., 2014). Therefore, if employees go beyond the recommended hours, they qualify for overtime pay which is 1.5 times the regular pay rates.

Nike does not also include the salary range in the job advertisement yet it is possible that the management may negotiate with the employees and pay them below the minimum wage which is $7.25 per hour (Clarkson et al., 2014). The job advertisement also indicates that the preferred candidate must be someone who can communicate effectively in the English language. It somehow discriminates international employees who perhaps understand other languages like French or Spanish. They may meet all the qualifications, but if Nike does not give them the opportunity to learn while employed, they might secure employment at Nike.  Therefore, Nike does not comply with the employment law.

The management must ensure that the job requirements must be clear and related to the advertised position to avoid confusion among applying candidates. It also saves the company from wasting time and other resources that they could have used for the success of the organization. The job requires that the candidates must have a Bachelor’s degree but does not specify the field (Nike Inc., 2019). It is not clear whether the position is available for anyone with a Bachelor’s degree or not.  Since the candidates do not have further details, they might go for the interview only to end up being rejected for the position.

It is also a requirement that the individuals must have an experience of three years in retail and have a one or two years of supervisory experience (Nike Inc., 2019). However, this requirement seems not to be in line with the job as the company can also employ individuals under new entry and nurture them to become competent in their duties.  Another requirement is the ability of the candidate applying for the position to couch and counsel the employees. It relates to the job position the employees need to remain motivated to increase their performance. Employees also need to portray reputable attitude and behavior towards other employees and the customers’ thus improving customer satisfaction.  The advertisement also includes the responsibilities of the candidate applying for the position mentioned. All the duties relate to the job position except managing all the activities in the S&R department (Nike Inc., 2019). The manager will need the assistance of the department supervisors to ensure every operation runs smoothly and every staff in the store works towards achieving its goals.

Nike Company aims at complying with the employment law to enhance productivity in the organization. However, Nike should ensure that every activity in the company adheres to the employment law and that every job posting requirements relate to the job position (Nike Inc., 2019). For instance, Nike should learn to accommodate everyone including those who are not creative but could be productive in other departments thus give them the opportunity to develop their creativity. Nike should also include specific educational background to enable the applying candidates to determine if they meet the requirements to apply at the appropriate time without worrying whether their Bachelor’s degree meet the criteria or not. Nike should also include that employees should work overtime at free will for the recommended overtime pay rate and that overtime work is compulsory as suggested in the job posting.

 Nike’s Approach to diversity

Nike has a diverse workforce and must ensure that it has an efficient approach to diversity. Nike focuses on reducing the barrier, overcoming the differences and promoting unity among employees through sports. The management views everyone’s contribution to be significant for its success. Nike also inspires athletes from over 190 countries around the world thus giving the company the opportunity to incorporate the needs of individuals from different cultural backgrounds into their operations to achieve inclusion. Nike has established employee networks that represent a diverse workforce that assist in promoting cultural awareness thus portrays the commitment of Nike towards diversity and inclusion.

Nike’s approach to diversity compares to that of AT & T in several perspectives but also differs in others. For example, Nike has a sports program of mentoring and motivating athletes from 190 countries all over the world (Nike Inc., 2019). AT & T has programs that motivate children to stay in school and develop an interest in technology as well as supporting community entrepreneurship programs. For example, the All-Star Code program founded in 2015 mentors school boys and connect them with the technology industry to gain exposure in computer science (Clarkson et al., 2014). The Black Girls Code also organize for local workshops, and girls can learn on various topics on technology like game development, coding language, web design, and robotics thus makes them completive in the tech industry.

Nike and AT & T are both gender inclusive out of all the employees at Nike, 52% of them are male while 48% are female (Nike Inc., 2019). Male dominate the role of directors as they are at 62% and female at 38%. The percentage of male employees at the vice president position is 74% while that of the female is 26% (Nike Inc., 2019). There is a significant difference in the percentage of male and female employees in different positions, and that indicates that Nike should aim at encouraging more women to take executive roles and lead in various roles.  In terms of ethnicity, the percentage of White employees at Nike is 44% while nonwhite employees add to 56% of the total employees (Nike Inc., 2019). White employees dominate executive positions while nonwhite is less than the average. It is essential that Nike should encourage more candidates from nonwhite ethnicity to apply for executive jobs. Nike should also give the employees an opportunity for personal and career development. There should be equal opportunity for promotions such that employees who are productive and competitive have moved to advanced positions in the company.

On the other hand, AT & T employees at the management comprise of 35% female and 65% male.  The overall percentage of women in both frontline and management is 31.3% while that of male employees is 68.7% (Clarkson et al., 2014). The difference in these percentages indicates that the company should empower more women to gain management skills as well as technical skills required for the success of the company. The company also continues to empower young girls through programs like The Black Girl Code. In general, AT & T has more white employees than employees from other ethnic backgrounds (Clarkson et al., 2014).  The company should carry out more developmental and creative programs that allow individuals from nonwhite ethnicity to train and learn the technical and managerial skill that is relevant to achieve competency in the tech industry.

Both Nike and AT & T have employee networks that act as a demonstration of their commitment to diversity and inclusion. In as much as Nike does not have detailed information on its employee networks as that of AT & T, they both have networks in the Asia Pacific. AT & T has the Asia Pacific Women Organization founded in 2015 and has over 450 members. The APWO   focuses on encouraging and providing education among women in Asia and the Pacific. However, Nike has Asia Pacific and Friends Network which also performs almost similar role but not indicated. The available information is not sufficient to determine its mission.  Both companies also have resource groups and like veterans. AT & T’s Veterans provide services to veterans and their families regardless of their geographical location. It has over 10,000 members (Clarkson et al., 2014). Nike, on the other hand, has Nike Military Veterans and the Friends Network that also serve the veterans and their families.

In general, employers must ensure the protection of the employees and comply with the employment laws for the success of their operations and minimize the possibilities of being liable to employees’ lawsuits that can ruin their reputation and affect the productivity. The management must also ensure that they promote diversity and inclusivity such that the work environment remains conducive for every employee.

References

Clarkson, K., Miller, R., & Cross, F. (2014). Business Law: Texts and Cases. Nelson Education.

Nike  Inc., (2019). Diversity & Inclusion. Retrieved on March 19, 2019, from https://jobs.nike.com/inclusion

Nike  Inc., (2019). Retail Department Manager- Vancouver Store.  Retrieved on March 19, 2019, from  https://jobs.nike.com/job/united-states/retail-department-manager-vancouver-store/824/2154876