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Understanding LGBT individuals' employment environment in Taiwan: a relational framework perspective

Jennet Achyldurdyyeva (Institute of Human Resource Management, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan)
Li-Fan Wu (Institute of Human Resource Management, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan)
Nurbibi Datova (School of Business Management, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan)

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion

ISSN: 2040-7149

Article publication date: 19 March 2021

Issue publication date: 19 June 2023

1265

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to examine the aspects of workplace environment and the experiences of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) employees in an Asian context; a subject that has hitherto been somewhat neglected. It responds to a call for more contextual research in the field of employment diversity in organizational management in general.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a mixed method study, which utilizes multiple sources of primary and secondary data and consists of in-depth personal interviews, a survey of LGBT employees, published data (including legislation and state policies), reports issued by social and media organizations, documentary evidence from Taiwanese companies and insights drawn from the existing literature.

Findings

It was found that there is an interplay between the macro, meso and micro levels in the multilevel relational framework applied to diversity of employment in Taiwan. Macrolevel factors, such as supportive legislation, mass media and social tolerance toward LGBT community positively affect mesolevel factors, such as stable and secure social networks among the LGBT community in the form of legal and social organizations (NGOs, social media, bars, restaurants, etc.) as well as many companies inclusion of sexual orientation in their definitions of diversity. However, this is opposed by macrolevel, cultural values related to family structure and intergenerational relationships that inhibit pro-active integration and equality of LGBT individuals at the meso organizational level. Companies headed by older-generation leadership can be slow to advocate, support and promote sexual-orientation diversity in their workplaces. In contrast, microlevel data shows that LGBT employees receive robust psychological support from their peer group, friends and the LGBT community, although gaining acceptance by family and coworkers remains a challenge.

Research limitations/implications

Future studies need to focus on the dynamics of the meso- and microlevel factors by investigating how organizational structure, perspectives of leaders and HR managers, diversity management practices and attitudes and behaviors of LGBT employees and other coworkers affect development and integration of sexual-orientation diversity programs within organizations.

Practical implications

Managers, policy makers in organization as well as educators benefit from the context-sensitive findings and recommendations offered in this paper.

Social implications

Understanding of LGBT individuals employment environment helps to facilitate or hinder the positive development of equal society and benefit both LGBT employees, their coworkers and managers.

Originality/value

Limited research exists on the LGBT employees experiences at work in Asia. This study makes unique contribution to the understanding of sexual orientation category of diversity at work in Taiwan context.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Professor Leong Chan-Hoong (Singapore University of Social Sciences) for providing rigorous and very helpful developmental comments throughout the submission and review process, Professor Eddy Ng (Dalhousie University) for the invitation to submit our work to this special issue, Professor Richard Greggory Johnson III (University of San Francisco) for his comments on an the earlier version of this paper at the EDI conference in 2019 and the two anonymous reviewers for their comprehensive comments and sensible suggestions during the review process. The authors would also like to express their deep gratitude to the interview subjects who kindly provided their time and insights and the representatives of the Taiwan Social Change Survey in the Institute of Sociology at Academia Sinica for their free and prompt data release that was essential to our research design. The authors did not receive any specific funding for this work and confirm that there are no conflicts of interests associated with the study, the companies and the interview respondents.

Citation

Achyldurdyyeva, J., Wu, L.-F. and Datova, N. (2023), "Understanding LGBT individuals' employment environment in Taiwan: a relational framework perspective", Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Vol. 42 No. 5, pp. 656-684. https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-02-2020-0042

Publisher

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Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited

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