Global configurations in multinational enterprises, duality, and the challenge of LGBT inclusivity in unsympathetic host countries within Africa

Abstract

The growing expectations regarding business and human rights poses significant challenges to multinational enterprises (MNEs) operating in diverse settings especially where there is a 'clash of values' between their home and host countries. For example, a MNE from a socially liberal home country such as Sweden operating in a socially repressed host country such as Saudi Arabia. Companies spend vast amounts of time and resources developing their values as part of their vision and mission statements. i MNEs operate in multiple international locations which may result in conflict between their expressed value systems and how they are able to articulate them in different host countries. This is compounded where a host country has legislative restrictions prohibiting the manifestation of certain human rights, which may affect the ability of a MNE seeking to respect human rights, it sees as core to its value system. A particular example of this is as regards LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) rights where there is a significant divide between parts of the world where this is being pursued and other parts where there is growing antagonism towards LGBT issues. This tension is pronounced when it affects the ability of a MNE to respect the rights of its own employees as would be the case with LGBT employees working in hostile environments which is the focus of our paper. With increasing levels of globalization, changing economic structures and the rising demand for global labor, MNEs are recognizing the added value that employees bring to the organization regardless of their race, gender, sexual orientation, religion etc. (Best, Soyode, Muller-Camen, & Boff, 2015; Syed & Özbilgin, 2009). MNEs are therefore increasingly employing individuals with

A Scoping Review of Intimate Partner Violence as It Relates to the Experiences of Gay and Bisexual Men

“…A hostile societal climate can provide optimum conditions for such minority stress and distinctive features of abuse to take place. One third of the countries in the world (79 countries) do not have explicit protective laws dedicated to protecting the sexual minority community and in some cases even enforce illegal measures against those in same-sex relations (Luiz & Spicer, 2019).…”

Ethnocentric HRM practices: evidence from Western MNEs in Ghana

“…The institutional and cultural pressures might be substantial for subsidiaries in host countries demonstrating wide institutional distance leading to a considerable increase in liability of foreignness (Ayentimi et al , 2018b). The difficulty of transferring practices is attributable to organisational structures and practices mirroring institutional environments in which they have initially developed (Siebers et al , 2015) and differing between contexts (Luiz and Spicer, 2019). Ghanaian cultural and institutional specificities such as the role of chiefs in conflict resolution procedures, high power distance context coupled with cronyism, corruption, deference to seniors, family and social relationships, and in-group collectivism widen the institutional distance between Ghana and the West and should pose challenges to the transfer of HRM practices.…”

What do we know about diversity, intersectionality and inclusion in organisationally-assigned expatriation? A review of relocation management company/consultancy practitioner research

“…With respect to sexual orientation, employer action in respect of compensation and benefits (Gedro et al, 2013;Luiz and Spicer, 2021;McNulty et al, 2018), support mechanisms (McNulty and Hutchings, 2016;McNulty et al, 2018), family implications (Gedro et al, 2013), and acculturation (McNulty, 2015;McPhail, 2017;McPhail and Fisher, 2015) all feature in the academic literature on supporting LGBTQ+ assignees. The practical application of compensation and benefits elements of international assignment policies such as the provision of spousal assistance and housing may prove to be impossible for same sex couples in countries where homosexuality is illegal or being identified as part of a same-sex couple brings great danger (Luiz and Spicer, 2021). This reflection of Ferner et al's (2005) warning that headquarters policy may not be embraced in host subsidiaries is clearly detrimental to organisations attempting to enact policy through practical support for expatriate sexual minorities.…”

“…LGBTQ+ assignees can face considerable barriers to their expatriation including legislative and societal intolerance, stigmatisation and discrimination (Faeth and Kittler, 2020; Luiz and Spicer, 2021) with transgender individuals experiencing discrimination particularly severely (Singh, 2018). Employers' duty of care can preclude LGBTQ+ expatriation where same-sex relationships attract severe penalties yet, even where homosexuality is legal, same-sex couples can face barriers to residency, work visas, marriage and adoption, etc.…”