ENGR201 Professional Practice and Responsibility ©
Lesson 8 Podcast Transcript: Duties towards the Public
Thinking About Inclusivity and Diversity
In this podcast, we will discuss numerous concepts that relate to questions of
discrimination and diversity.
We have seen that professionals have a duty to not violate the provisions of the
Canadian charter and the Québec charter. One major implication of this duty is to
ensure that engineers do not engage in discrimination of any form. But what is meant by
discrimination, and how does it relate to priorities in Canadian society? We will examine
these aspects in detail.
Prejudice, Discrimination, and Harassment
In thinking about discrimination, it is useful to understand the concept in the context of
two related concepts of prejudice and harassment. The Association of Professional
Engineers, Geophysicists, and Geologists of Alberta (APEGGA) defines prejudice as an
opinion formed without taking time and care to judge fairly, often based on incomplete
and stereotyped information. The key point is that prejudice is a biased opinion that is
often based on incomplete information. Discrimination is usually built on prejudiced
opinions, but it takes prejudice a step further because it influences behaviours.
Discrimination implies treating people differently because of some particular social
attribute, such as race, gender or religion. Discrimination, when it results in an extreme
form of behavior, results in harassment. It occurs when an individual is subjected to
unwanted behaviour that offends, demeans, or humiliates.
Discrimination comes in several forms, some of them are directed while others are less
easy to identify. Direct discrimination is discrimination that is directed against person(s)
on the basis of prejudice. This is the most clearly identifiable form of discrimination,
primarily because it happens in the open so that people become aware of it. Another
form of discrimination is adverse effect discrimination. It is a discrimination that happens
as a result of applying a rule or policy uniformly. When governments or companies
apply a policy in society, it often discriminates against groups in society as a result. A
good example is positive discrimination in hiring that favours visible minorities or
women. There is an adverse effect discrimination that is created against those who do
not fall within these groups. Their chances at getting the same jobs have been reduced
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because of the preference that underrepresented groups have. A final form of
discrimination is systemic discrimination. This discrimination is widespread but not very
easy to identify. It is a discrimination that is rooted in accepted ways of doing things in a
business, profession, or occupation. This tends to prevent categories of people from
achieving their goals. A good example of this is the glass ceiling. The glass ceiling is the
existence of a barrier that prevent women from advancing in their careers in that
organization beyond a particular level.
Multiculturalism and Diversity
Multiculturalism and diversity are the opposite of discrimination. Diversity is the variety
in different social categories, such as gender, race, ethnicity, age, religion, national
origin or sexual orientation. Multiculturalism is an equal acceptance for social
differences in terms of gender, age, sexual orientation, ethnicity, race or national origin.
While diversity is the presence of cultural differences in society, multiculturalism is a
positive accepting attitude towards these differences. Such a multicultural orientation
that fosters diversity has several advantages. It fosters a spirit of mutual understanding
in the workplace, and more importantly, it allows everyone to develop their abilities to its
full potential. In Canada, multiculturalism is an official policy that reflects an equal
acceptance of races, religions, languages and cultures. This policy is furthered through
Canadian legislation. The preservation and enhancement of multicultural heritage in
Canada is the aim of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. In addition,
Canada’s Multiculturalism Act of 1988 protects aboriginal rights, and the rights of people
to enjoy their cultures and use of languages other than English and French. This legal
background has allowed a mix of ethnic groups, languages, and cultures to co-exist in
Canada. It is for these reasons that Canada is considered a cultural mosaic unlike U.S.,
which has adopted a melting pot approach. Canada, unlike U.S., seeks to foster
diversity without assimilating different cultural groups.
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