Our
nation has made great strides to rectify past wrongs against its citizens in
regards to discrimination for minorities in educational, professional, and
personal opportunities. Some of the greatest accomplishments
in this was the collective laws of affirmative action. The first executive
order outlining specific laws surrounding the selection criteria of workers
paid by federal government funds was signed into law in 1961 by President John
F. Kennedy (Dias, 2011). Since then, there have been many executive
orders, laws, statutes, and judgments that have further defined the laws
surrounding affirmative action. Fair hiring practices, treatment of employees,
and just wages are among the issues contained within its
protections.
Affirmative action is an issue based on collective laws that protect certain individuals from being discriminated against with regard to employment or educational opportunity based on gender, race, religion, or status that affects human resource management in important ways (Dias, 2011). A company must comply with the law in regards to attracting qualified candidates, selection criteria, and wages. In order to comply with the law, the company must understand why there are laws to protect certain groups of people, how the laws affect the company, and what steps are necessary to comply with the laws surrounding affirmative action. Human resource managers and anyone who works in this area must be fully aware of the laws, policies, and procedures surrounding this area of social justice in order to comply with them. This can be a very difficult task and must be outlined in not only a format that they can understand, but that those who the laws are in place to protect understand what their rights are as well. Whether you work in the human resource area of a company, are an employee for a company, or just want to know more about affirmative action, it takes looking at the issue in depth to understand why the laws were necessary, how they protect workers, and how they may affect you today.
In recent years, many have raised questions about how relevant the need for laws that protect minority groups really are. With such laws in place, reverse discrimination where those who are not in the minority are unfairly passed up for someone who belongs to a minority group who may not be as qualified, has been on the rise in some cases, with lawsuits arising with such practices taken too far. A good affirmative action policy outlines the purpose, aim, goals, and procedures for such protections (Dias, 2011). The goal of affirmative action initiatives is for equality of opportunity, especially for federally contracted work, as historically, the color of one’s skin, their sexual orientation, and whether they were male or female worked against the person if they weren’t the preferred employee type. This includes the hiring practices and policies put into place and the monitoring of such to ensure that they are justified and being maintained properly for the intended purpose (Solomon, 1995). While having a diverse workplace offers many benefits to the employer, including a competitive advantage based on many different perspectives, issues surrounding affirmative action can be complex (Solomon, 1995).
Determinations of percentages for a company’s goals are based on representative data for the area that they are located (Clark, 2013). Collecting this data must be done carefully as to ensure that it is accurate and complete. If it isn’t, the premise of policies in affirmative action will be based on false information, resulting in issues with negative attitudes and perceptions surrounding it. While employers are encouraged to maintain goals for employment percentages within the outlines of affirmative action policy, they are not permitted to ask certain questions during the interview process, such as whether the candidate has a disability, how old they are, etc. that could help them in determining if hiring them will help with their percentages of that minority goal (Clark, 2013). In addition, compiling sensitive information surrounding these concerns complicates the security of the information for companies as well. The information compiled for this purpose must be handled carefully and cannot be the only criteria in determining the winning candidate. Tests and selection criteria must be fairly given in a way that all have equal access to the position if qualified, and if applicable, belonging to a minority group can be used as an additional criterion, but cannot be the only one (Solomon, 1995). This can be very confusing for those in human resource management as it is imperative that they comply with the law, but have a hard time distinguishing whether their candidates are in the pool of that area. Companies must be very careful that they do not infringe on the rights of those they are selecting, while encouraging compliance with applicable affirmative action laws. Because this is such a complex issue, there are companies who specialize in such things, so hiring one to collect data, develop a policy, implement hiring procedures, and monitoring its use may be an answer to this dilemma (Parent, 1995).
When hiring practices lead to the selection of candidates perceived to have only obtained the job because of their race or gender to meet an employment goal in-line with affirmative action, perceptions of their abilities can be questioned by other employees (Feather & Boeckmann, 2007). This can become an issue for any human resource management professional in the workplace because they will be the person who has to deal with such negative implications. If a promotion or employee selection is not based on merit, the employee will more than likely be resented by others who feel that they were more deserving of the promotion or position. Negative perceptions of unequal promotions based on criterion that creates reverse discrimination can cause a volatile work environment, employee turnover, and the possibility of legal ramifications (Feather & Boeckmann, 2007). It is imperative that affirmative action policies are well-developed and thought out to remove this situation if possible. Under-developed and miss-informed hiring personnel may cause more grief than they realize.
Not only is it important that those who are in human resource management be well-versed and educated on affirmative action, its laws, policies and procedures, those that they are set out to protect need to be aware of what is available to them in order to receive much benefit from it (Doke, 2005). Belonging to a union, researching local regulations, and studying past legal cases helps anyone who isn’t sure what is available to know what can help them obtain employment without discrimination. By providing fair access to good jobs by qualified people, the gap between discriminatory hiring and firing processes and fair ones is narrowed (Moran, 1997).
While it may seem that modern times are less discriminatory than its former counterparts in recruitment, selection, hiring, promotions, and firing procedures, there is still a need for such measures. It is documented in many professions that white males make a great percentage more than similarly qualified women or other minorities for the same work (Solomon, 1995). While racial quotas have been deemed unconstitutional, ensuring that access to such jobs for those of different nationalities and races are equally an issue (CNN, 2014). We may have come a long way in reversing the detrimental effects of discriminatory practices, but it is up to the human resource professionals now and in the future to ensure that these practices, policies, and procedures are well-developed and conducted in a fair way. Human resource professionals must be thoroughly educated in this area to do so, and in partaking in this, will change the way affirmative action is perceived for this generation and every one after.
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Affirmative action is an issue based on collective laws that protect certain individuals from being discriminated against with regard to employment or educational opportunity based on gender, race, religion, or status that affects human resource management in important ways (Dias, 2011). A company must comply with the law in regards to attracting qualified candidates, selection criteria, and wages. In order to comply with the law, the company must understand why there are laws to protect certain groups of people, how the laws affect the company, and what steps are necessary to comply with the laws surrounding affirmative action. Human resource managers and anyone who works in this area must be fully aware of the laws, policies, and procedures surrounding this area of social justice in order to comply with them. This can be a very difficult task and must be outlined in not only a format that they can understand, but that those who the laws are in place to protect understand what their rights are as well. Whether you work in the human resource area of a company, are an employee for a company, or just want to know more about affirmative action, it takes looking at the issue in depth to understand why the laws were necessary, how they protect workers, and how they may affect you today.
In recent years, many have raised questions about how relevant the need for laws that protect minority groups really are. With such laws in place, reverse discrimination where those who are not in the minority are unfairly passed up for someone who belongs to a minority group who may not be as qualified, has been on the rise in some cases, with lawsuits arising with such practices taken too far. A good affirmative action policy outlines the purpose, aim, goals, and procedures for such protections (Dias, 2011). The goal of affirmative action initiatives is for equality of opportunity, especially for federally contracted work, as historically, the color of one’s skin, their sexual orientation, and whether they were male or female worked against the person if they weren’t the preferred employee type. This includes the hiring practices and policies put into place and the monitoring of such to ensure that they are justified and being maintained properly for the intended purpose (Solomon, 1995). While having a diverse workplace offers many benefits to the employer, including a competitive advantage based on many different perspectives, issues surrounding affirmative action can be complex (Solomon, 1995).
Determinations of percentages for a company’s goals are based on representative data for the area that they are located (Clark, 2013). Collecting this data must be done carefully as to ensure that it is accurate and complete. If it isn’t, the premise of policies in affirmative action will be based on false information, resulting in issues with negative attitudes and perceptions surrounding it. While employers are encouraged to maintain goals for employment percentages within the outlines of affirmative action policy, they are not permitted to ask certain questions during the interview process, such as whether the candidate has a disability, how old they are, etc. that could help them in determining if hiring them will help with their percentages of that minority goal (Clark, 2013). In addition, compiling sensitive information surrounding these concerns complicates the security of the information for companies as well. The information compiled for this purpose must be handled carefully and cannot be the only criteria in determining the winning candidate. Tests and selection criteria must be fairly given in a way that all have equal access to the position if qualified, and if applicable, belonging to a minority group can be used as an additional criterion, but cannot be the only one (Solomon, 1995). This can be very confusing for those in human resource management as it is imperative that they comply with the law, but have a hard time distinguishing whether their candidates are in the pool of that area. Companies must be very careful that they do not infringe on the rights of those they are selecting, while encouraging compliance with applicable affirmative action laws. Because this is such a complex issue, there are companies who specialize in such things, so hiring one to collect data, develop a policy, implement hiring procedures, and monitoring its use may be an answer to this dilemma (Parent, 1995).
When hiring practices lead to the selection of candidates perceived to have only obtained the job because of their race or gender to meet an employment goal in-line with affirmative action, perceptions of their abilities can be questioned by other employees (Feather & Boeckmann, 2007). This can become an issue for any human resource management professional in the workplace because they will be the person who has to deal with such negative implications. If a promotion or employee selection is not based on merit, the employee will more than likely be resented by others who feel that they were more deserving of the promotion or position. Negative perceptions of unequal promotions based on criterion that creates reverse discrimination can cause a volatile work environment, employee turnover, and the possibility of legal ramifications (Feather & Boeckmann, 2007). It is imperative that affirmative action policies are well-developed and thought out to remove this situation if possible. Under-developed and miss-informed hiring personnel may cause more grief than they realize.
Not only is it important that those who are in human resource management be well-versed and educated on affirmative action, its laws, policies and procedures, those that they are set out to protect need to be aware of what is available to them in order to receive much benefit from it (Doke, 2005). Belonging to a union, researching local regulations, and studying past legal cases helps anyone who isn’t sure what is available to know what can help them obtain employment without discrimination. By providing fair access to good jobs by qualified people, the gap between discriminatory hiring and firing processes and fair ones is narrowed (Moran, 1997).
While it may seem that modern times are less discriminatory than its former counterparts in recruitment, selection, hiring, promotions, and firing procedures, there is still a need for such measures. It is documented in many professions that white males make a great percentage more than similarly qualified women or other minorities for the same work (Solomon, 1995). While racial quotas have been deemed unconstitutional, ensuring that access to such jobs for those of different nationalities and races are equally an issue (CNN, 2014). We may have come a long way in reversing the detrimental effects of discriminatory practices, but it is up to the human resource professionals now and in the future to ensure that these practices, policies, and procedures are well-developed and conducted in a fair way. Human resource professionals must be thoroughly educated in this area to do so, and in partaking in this, will change the way affirmative action is perceived for this generation and every one after.
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