DIVERSITY RESOURCE GUIDE - apwa.net

1 American Public Works Association DIVERSITY RESOURCE GUIDE 2nd Edition Tips, Tools & Triumphs Volume I - May 2001 Volume II - August 2003 2nd Edition - August 2013 Produced by APWA National DIVERSITY Committee 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page 3 Introduction 5 Why DIVERSITY is Important 5 Global Understanding 6 Understanding 6 DIVERSITY of APWA Members 9 Intra-Cultural Communication & Etiquette 10 New Member Welcome/Orientation 12 Chapter Program Ideas 15 Exercises 20 Multi/Cross-Generational Statistics and Information 24 Volunteer Motivations by Generation 26

2 Religious or Cultural Days Page 27 Accommodating Different Religious Beliefs and Affiliation 28 Gender Gap in Engineering/Public Work 31 Wage Gap by Gender and Race 34 Differences in Gender Communication 37 Recognizing the ABILITY in Disabilities 41 Obesity Discrimination 44 Chapter Newsletter DIVERSITY Quotes 46 Basic Core Competencies for Public Works Directors 47 APWA Standards of Professional Conduct 48 Triumphs 50 Poem & Stories 52 Resources 3 INTRODUCTION PWA DIVERSITY Committee is pleased to present the 2nd Edition of the APWA DIVERSITY RESOURCE GUIDE .

3 Responses were very favorable to the first editions (both Volumes 1 and 2) and due to this response, and the age of the previous volumes, the Committee decided in 2012 to revise and consolidate the volumes into one GUIDE . The APWA Board of Directors believes that institutionalizing the DIVERSITY concept takes a commitment from all levels of the association, but that it must be embraced at the top level in order to empower the concept throughout APWA. The concept involves constant introspection and attention to the ways we all communicate and work with one another.

4 The APWA DIVERSITY Statement approved by the Board of Directors states: The American Public Works Association recognizes, appreciates and fosters the synergy, which is created when the work environment values the differences in individuals and practices inclusiveness and open communication. DIVERSITY is neither an affirmative action nor an equal opportunity program. Through legislating equality we can fail to recognize the spectacular ways in which people are different. APWA is moving beyond affirmative action and is affirming DIVERSITY .

5 DIVERSITY means all the ways in which people differ from each other and how we accept and use those differences depends on whether DIVERSITY becomes an asset or a liability for APWA, its Chapters, and for our workplace. The American Public Works Association values all individuals and different perspectives of those individuals, and believes in providing the process for all to feel included as part of the whole. DIVERSITY includes race, gender, creed, age, lifestyle, national origin, disability, personality, educational background, and income levels.

6 WHAT IS DIVERSITY ? DIVERSITY is a commitment to recognizing and appreciating the variety of characteristics that make individuals unique in an atmosphere that promotes and celebrates individual and collective achievement. A 4 our APWA DIVERSITY Committee supports you and thanks you for your work on helping to change our environment to celebrate DIVERSITY . If you have questions or need assistance, please contact us. Or if there is another area of DIVERSITY you would like to see highlighted in a future edition of the RESOURCE GUIDE , please contact us.

7 APWA DIVERSITY Committee (2000-2001) Jennifer Barlas, Chair Jason Cosby Ron Ford Betty Francis Barbara Little lawrence Lux, Board Liaison Kaye Sullivan, Staff Liaison APWA DIVERSITY Committee (2002-2003) Herb Fain, Chair John Benda Ann Burnett Vanessa Conrad Jason Cosby Karen Johnson Teresa A. Scott lawrence Lux, Board Liaison Kaye Sullivan, Staff Liaison APWA DIVERSITY Committee (2012-2013) Charles R. Jordan, MPA, Chair Charles Pinson, Volume 1 Subcommittee Chair Rebecca Bilderback, Volume 2 Subcommittee Chair Terri Troup Judith Hines Jennifer Rose Catherine D.

8 Schoenenberger Clark A. Wantoch, Tracy Warner, Cora Jackson-Fossett, Board Liaison Cindy Long, Staff Liaison A special thank you is given to Elizabeth Mitchell (training supervisor, Louisville & Jefferson county MSD), former member of the DIVERSITY Committee, for her contributions on the Exercise Section of this GUIDE . Y 5 WHY DIVERSITY IS IMPORTANT DIVERSITY is important because it provides unique and inspirational perspectives. Achieving DIVERSITY in APWA is not just the right thing to do anymore; it is a matter of survival, of productivity, and of prosperity.

9 The for-profit world has seen this coming for quite some time. They have experienced the creativity of a more diverse staff and a better understanding of the needs and wants of their customers. Being supportive of all types of members simply makes good business sense and strengthens APWA for all its members. President John F. Kennedy said, Change is the law of life. Those who look only to the past or the present are certain to miss the future. With the changing face of the workforce ( , globalization, dominant cultures losing their dominant status, people working longer, healthier lifestyles), functioning in a diverse work environment and participating in a diverse association will be as much a part of our lives as computers are.

10 We can either embrace/celebrate DIVERSITY and use it to APWA s benefit or we can fail to recognize the world s demographic future and lose out on valuable resources and contributions to the association. Finally, many people in the profession who experience difference will seek out other associations to meet their needs if this association doesn t serve a diverse population. GLOBAL UNDERSTANDING If we could at this very moment shrink the earth s population to a village of precisely 100 but maintain the existing human ratios our world would look like this: 60 Asians 15 Africans 10 Europeans 9 Latin Americans and the Caribbean 5 Northern Americans 1 Oceanian 70 People of Color 30 White 70 Non-Christian 30 Christian 51 Male 49 Female One-third of the entire world s wealth would be in the hands of four people all citizens of the United States.