Diversity Management in a Post-colonial Multi-ethnic Context in the Global South. The Case of the Nigerian Public Service

Diversity management (DM) in post-colonial multi-ethnic countries of the Global South has tended to rely on employment quotas to achieve DM objectives such as equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI). This study explores employees’ lived experiences of DM in public service organisations in Nigeria. It provides insight into employees’ perceptions of the resulting justice and fairness of DM policies, including that of the Federal Character Principle (FCP), through employees’ voices and narratives of encounters and lived experiences of EDI practices in the workplace. A qualitative case study was undertaken with data collected by interviews and vignettes (or vignette-elicited interviewing) from thirty employees in two Federal Civil Service organisations in Nigeria. These were designed to elucidate current practices and nested meanings within specific historical, social, and cultural settings. Additional data were obtained from government documents and national and local media publications. These data were analysed using thematic analysis, with all emerging themes further analysed through McCall’s intersectional framework. This study contributes to the HRM literature by elucidating the influence on perceptions of justice and fairness of employees in multi-ethnic Nigeria and the actions of line managers when executing human resource (HR)-delegated practices aimed at achieving DM outcomes. The findings further contribute to the EDI literature by revealing how intersectional factors influence ethnically diverse employees’ experience of DM policies and practices. Moreover, it discloses that diversity-HRM policies driven by universal “best practices” to specific contexts may be constrained and challenged by unique socio-historical, socio-cultural, and relational factors.

URI

https://bradscholars.brad.ac.uk/handle/10454/20686

Type

Thesis

Qualification name

PhD