Equality in Career Advancement in Nigerian banks: Human Resources policies and employees’ lived experiences.

Research on equality and diversity in organisations, and the Human Resource Management (HRM) policies that aim to support it, is often based on western experiences. Previous research has also shown how globalisation has led HR managers in African organisations to borrow western templates for pursuing equality and diversity and has called for greater understanding of the implications for employees and HRM. This thesis examines how HR managers in Nigeria devise and implement policies aiming to achieve equality in terms of gender, ethnic group and age, and how they are experienced by employees across these categories. The study was conducted through case studies of three Nigerian banks. Banks are a good site to investigate the interaction between western and African ideas about equality because they are positioned at the intersection of globalised regulations based on western understandings and local beliefs about ethnicity, gender and age. Sources of data were official (HR) policy documents and semi-structured interviews with HR managers from the three banks; the policies reviewed were recruitment, induction, performance management policies and anti-discrimination policies. Forty-three semi-structured interviews were conducted with bank employees. Documentary analysis was used to analyse the relevant policies while thematic analysis was used to identify themes in the interview data. The thesis shows that although there are documented policies which support equality in employees’ career advancement, HR managers are still able to make biased decisions by finding loopholes in the policies and using their own discretion. In addition, bank employees experience discrimination based on their gender, ethnicity, and age; managers show bias based on ethnic groups during promotions, while older employees claim that they feel redundant and disposable despite cultural norms that would require the favouritism of older people. Also, women reported facing stereotypes by being relegated to roles of marketing and customer service, while being discriminated against during nominations for senior executive roles. The thesis concludes that HR managers in the chosen Nigerian banks are challenged by pursuing equality in a country whose culture and history are characterised by division, stratification and inequality. This research contributes to contextual HRM and the exploration of HR practices from an African perspective, showing how the collectivist and patriarchal culture presents a challenge to western models of equality