Diversification and the Problem Analysis of the Problem

1. Erhan Sozen 1
CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, LOS ANGELES
DR. MCGUIRE
October 29, 2012
Erhan Sozen
LAFD: Diversity Ignites Discrimination

2. Erhan Sozen 2
Diversification and the Problem
As time passed by, LAFD has changed its ethnic and gender structure. Before 1974,
black people have not been treated equally in the organization. However, the federal
government found the city of Los Angeles guilty for discriminating Blacks, Latinos,
and Asians. After 1974, in order to strengthen diversity and prevent discrimination,
a Minority Recruitment Unit and Affirmative Action Program has been placed in the
organization. Thus, LAFD primarily aimed to recruit minorities and females.
With the diversity in the LAFD, so many problems have been occurred within the
organization because of the discrimination and hazing against women and African-
Americans. LAFD suffered from hazing, which was long-held tradition and can be
defined as “horseplay.” Many lawsuits have been filed because of hazing in LAFD. In
this case, a hazing victim, Tennie Pierce, sued the city after he has been exposed to a
horseplay from his colleague, Arevalo. It was resulted in city to pay $1.43 to Tennie
Pierce. The other incident in this case is that gender discrimination happened to
female firefighter, Melissa Kelley. In her rookie years, she has been harassed by a
male firefighter. She remained silent not to be complainer. After that, she was
injured in a drill called “The Humiliator.” She was pinned under the ladder and her
Captain, Frank Lima, stopped her colleague not to help her, which ended
withserious injury.
Basically, the main problem in this case is that LAFD was not able to provide
workplace for minorities and females where discrimination and hazing were not
existed. As it is stated by Laura Chick, the City Controller, “Weak leadership and a
broken disciplinary system encouraged harassment and hazing.” It is also essential
not to forget lawsuits as a result of discrimination and hazing, which cause million of
taxpayer dollars.
Analysis of the Problem
LAFD strived for recruiting minorities and females to create diversity. From 1980 to
2006, African-American, Hispanic and Asian firefighters increased by 5%, 14% and

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2.2%, respectively. These numbers show that LAFD could not be able to achieve
diversity successfully. Although it is stated LAFD` s mission in the case that LAFD is
located in a “melting pot,” LAFD could not show sufficient responsibility to its
external environment and create a solid organizational culture around minorities.
Thus, lack of discipline and respect led hazing and discrimination to be active in the
LAFD. Every organization has an informal culture that is an “atmosphere” in short
words, which reflects traditions, habits and folklores. Firefighters considered that
horseplay and pranks are long-held traditions of the LAFD. However, it is not
expected for hazing and discrimination victims to take it and remain silent. Hence,
according to the Article 23 in United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
“everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favorable
conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.” It means that LAFD
had to provide fair and appropriate working conditions to firefighters.Authorities in
LAFD should have taken precautions and imposed sanctions for hazing and
discrimination activities in order to save the reputation and to stay as a good
organization in the eyes of potential firefighters.
Female workers sometimes experience harassment and gender discrimination in
the workplace. LAFD was an organization where almost all female firefighters has
experienced unwanted touching, leering or derogatory comments according to
female Captain I Alicia Mathis. She tried to stop unfair and implausible working
conditions that were expected from female firefighters to work with and she filed a
claim at last. As it is obviously seen the graphic in the case, only 2.6% of firefighters
are female in 2008. Apparently, the reason is that many female either were
discouraged of Candidate Physical Test or previous incidents against females in
LAFD although LAFD spent costly marketing strategies to recruit female firefighters.
To increase the number of female firefighters, LAFD should have trained male
firefighters how to work with female and treat them in the workplace because male
firefighters have never been used to work with female before and some of them
might still have thought that women are not part of workforce.

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Conclusion
LAFD operates in an area where many people from different ethnicity live. The
culture of the LAFD should have been built within the accepted diversity and respect
among firefighters. In addition, disciplinary actions should have been taken and
anti-discrimination trainings could have been held to support this culture in the first
place.
Even though it is a late decision, the city mayor declared a new policy of zero
tolerance against hazing in all city departments. This is what LAFD needed in terms
of creating socially and professionally proper workplace.
References:
Gill, David W. It`s About Excellence . 1st ed. Utah: Executive Excellence Publishing,
2008. 121-124. Print.
http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/index.shtml#a25