An honest, comfortable discussion about workplace myths gave employees a chance to learn about what some predict is the next wave of professional staff: Latinos.
“With the changing demographics of the U.S., organizations and employees must prepare for and understand the importance of cultural inclusion,” said Wilka Toppins, J.D., president of The Corporate Latina and guest speaker of the UNMC Diversity Lectures and Cultural Arts Series.
An “un-PC” discussion
As a sought-out national lecturer, Toppins presented 15 common myths (there will be a quiz, shortly) and encouraged participants to challenge them. (Yep, if you didn’t attend, you missed a great opportunity to throw political correctness out of the window.)
“We’ve taken a different approach with the series this year. The core of our events is designed to provide professional growth,” said Linda Cunningham, diversity specialist in UNMC’s Human Resources department and event organizer.
Quiz time!
And so for those who missed it, try to guess the correct “true or false” answers to the quiz below. The first employee who responds correctly to today@unmc.edu will win tickets to an upcoming art exhibit.
- 1. Professional, well-educated Latinos are lazy and take a “manana” type approach to work.
- 2. Latinos value collectivism over individualization.
- 3. Most of the growth in the Latino population is due to natural born U.S. citizens not immigrants.
- 4. There is a huge disconnect between corporate America and the multicultural generation of workers.
- 5. A Latino’s ability to speak correct English is often perceived (by non-Latinos) as a sign of intelligence.