Though I find it ultimately disheartening that we, as a culture, still struggle to find equity in treatment, I am hopeful that true balance can be achieved without the use of quotas or other mandates. I have long felt that these systems are far more damaging in application than one would assume in theory.
Perhaps too idyllic I know, but I still believe that there are ways to select the absolute best candidate while remaining blind of gender, race, et al.
After all, what is the practice of quota hiring or the more familiar “affirmative action”, if not discrimination? Consider the following definition of the term:
“Treatment or consideration of, or making a distinction in favor of or against, a person or thing based on the group, class, or category to which that person or thing belongs rather than on individual merit”
As long as we continue to promote any system that places emphasis or consideration on race, gender, or religion we will never truly rid ourselves of this particularly distasteful practice.
It is my further belief that in many instances, the quota system is based upon faulty logic. Regarding gender discrimination specifically, in some instances the numbers do not tell the complete story. Certain industries may be dominated at one level by a certain gender, while the reverse is true in higher ranks. However, closer inspection may reveal that the pool of individuals seeking to promote or take on additional responsibility offer a gender presentation more in line with the next level. Often this is dependent upon the demands of the next position and requirements such as relocation, for example.
Some industries lend themselves more readily to secondary income employees to fill the ranks, as it were. These individuals, often are motivated by schedule, flexibility and benefits, versus the financial focus of those approaching a field from a primary breadwinner perspective.
Granted this does not apply across the board, but it is for reasons such as this that I feel quotas, while representing society as a whole, may not necessarily accurately represent the business workforce. Additionally, one can easily see how this system may not only preclude the promotion of the best candidate, but potentially empower an unqualified choice. I would argue that this possibility alone should discount the merit of this so-called “equal opportunity” system.
Though I believe we have seen progress in these issues in recent years, I am aware we still have ground to cover. It is with sincere hope for progress that I approach the coming years. Ironically enough, I am still looking for "change we can all believe in."
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It seems to me that a wise man once said something about content of character rather than color of skin. I don't think it is possible to completely eliminate bias or discrimination from human nature. I prefer Coke over Pepsi, but I really like root beer. I like to think that I chose my life-long friends very wisely based on who they were as people and what things we had in common and how much I enjoy spending time with them.
ReplyDeleteAny sort of "affirmative action" is completely counter to the free market and assumes that every person in a society is a completely interchangeable piece of the machine. If you needed to hire a pasty white guy to fill a quota in your missle guidance system business and I was the first one that walked in the door, you would not be maximizing the efficiency of your business by hiring me.
Rather than look at the evil corporations for trying to maximize the use of their resources, I think most of the blame should lie (lay?) at the feet of the education system of this country that continues to churn out underqualified, undereducated, functionally illiterate "pieces of the machine." We are doing a tremendous disservice to sooooooo many young people by pushing them through a broken system and leaving them to fend for themselves in the real world, where their skill set is completely out of line with what the market demands.
All that being said, if you try to take away my favorable consideration for a government job based on my military service, we're gonna have issues. You can screw around with everybody else's, but you better not even think about touching mine.
I am not a fan of affirmative actions or quotas, either. I did make a point in my most recent blog that *if* governmental regulations are in place to prevent discrimination against minorities and religious groups, they should also be in place to prevent wage discrimination against women.
ReplyDeleteHowever, what can be done to prevent the small percentage of business owners (especially in the South) who actively discriminate? Should we just let the EEOC deal with it when such circumstances arise? There is always the proverbial bad apple that spoils the bunch.