Biographical Characteristics In The Workplace

Biographical characteristics are personalities or characters that influence a person. These characteristics normally affect a person one way or another within the organization and society. Personal characteristics such as age, gender, race and length of tenure that are objectives and are easily obtained through personnel records are example of bibliographical characteristics.

Age

The relationship between age and job performance is likely to be an issue of increasing importance for the next couple years. There’s a wide belief that job performance declines when age increases, some employers have a mix feeling towards this belief. A few may see a number of positive qualities that older workers bring to their job, their years of experiences,

This definition allows each individual to define his or her race and ethnicity. Race and ethnicity have been studied as they relate to employment outcomes such as hiring decisions, performance evaluations, pay, and workplace discrimination. Most research has concentrated on the differences in outcomes and attitudes between Whites and African Americans, with little study of issues relevant to Asian, Native American, and Hispanic populations. Race is a controversial issue. In many cases, even bringing up the topic of race and ethnicity is enough to create an uncomfortable silence. Indeed, evidence suggests that some people find interacting with other racial groups uncomfortable unless there are clear behavioral scripts to guide their behavior. Most people in the United States identify themselves according to racial group. The U.S. Bureau of the Census classifies individuals according to seven broad racial categories: American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, Some Other Race, White, and Two or More Races. An ethnicity distinction is also made between native English speakers and Hispanics: Hispanics can be of any

Federal law does not prohibit discrimination against employees based on sexual orientation, though many states and municipalities do. In general, observers note that even in the absence of federal legislation requiring nondiscrimination, many organizations have implemented policies and procedures protecting employees on the basis of sexual orientation.

As for gender identity, companies are increasingly putting in place policies to govern how their organization treats employees who change genders (often called transgender employees). In 2001, only eight companies in the Fortune 500 had policies on gender identity. Currently a vast majority (89%) prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, while 66% prohibit discrimination based on gender identity compares to jus three in