Introduction
The concept of discrimination at the workplace has gone through a significant transformation as societal norms evolved under the pressure of globalization and urbanization, international mobility and access to information. While a lot have changed since the US have accepted equal employment opportunities and freedom of its black population, many will argue that gender and racial discrimination are still deeply embedded in employment relationships (Shen et al, 2009). The point that should be made here is once the first step was done to promote diversity and inclusion in social and business contexts, the society cannot go back and accept discrimination. Moreover, the core argument of this work is that “Equal Opportunity Employment legislation is not enough, as formal legislation cannot change the individual mindset and unless companies and individuals change their worldview from anti-discriminatory to diversity-driven, we will still need Affirmative Action”. This essay will examine the recurrent situation and provide evidence to argue that equal employment opportunity is not enough and society still needs the legal framework to reach adequate levels of diversity and inclusion in modern companies.
Why is Equal Employment Opportunity Not Enough?
Milking discusses the issues of racial discrimination in the US, outlining his dream of America as a nation of freedom and inclusion and notes that he hopes that his kids would one day live in a community, where the color of their skin is secondary to their personality. Gazette and Scheller (2014) conduct an interesting study, which statistically shows that black and Hispanic population still live in poorer neighborhoods in the US. Moreover, the article suggests that white Americans in 2014 held over 88% of the total national health, accounting for 64% of the population, while the black Americans, accounting for 13% of the population hold only 2.7 of the total national wealth (Goyette and Scheller, 2014).
Fryer, R.G., Pager, D, and Spenkuch (2011) conduct an important study, which illustrates that by law the companies are not allowed to do that, but most of them still practice wage discrimination based on the race. The authors argue that in 2011 there was still an average of 30% wage gap between white and black Americans, occupying similar or identical positions (Fryer, Pager, and Spenkuch, 2011). The above-mentioned articles and the findings presented by the respective authors serve as supportive evidence to the argument that Equal Employment Opportunity is not enough. The point that should be made here is that the legislation aims at building on compliance of the companies with the formal rules and regulations, but it fails to address the “Golden Rule”, which makes people relate to each other and build their interaction in the social and business environment through the prism of self (Benett, 1979). With that discrimination, will continue being embedded in the society, unless organizational cultures, training, and social beliefs change in a way to promote diversity and inclusion.
Do We Still Need Affirmative Action?
Following the line of arguments above, it is interesting to consider the question of the role and the “need” for the Affirmative Action. While the democratic society openly promotes equal opportunities on the major elements of diversity, such as gender and race, it becomes evident that individual and group thinking in corporate and social environments continues being influenced by traditions and beliefs, which should be "outdated". Moreover, the cognitive and emotional response of the companies and individuals to the challenges of the external environment is grounded on the "survival instinct", which calls for the better and, thus, egocentric actions and choices. Affirmative Action is the policy, which favors people with disabilities and promotes positive discrimination (Shen et al, 2009). The statistics show that society is becoming more and more concerned with the racial discrimination and the lack of peace (Agiesta, 2015). Agiesta (2015) illustrates that in 1995 41% of Americans thought that racism is a big issue in their society, while in 2015 this number increased to 49%. Similarly, 64% of the Americans today think that racial tensions have increased over the past 10 years (Agiesta, 2015). It is possible to argue that these numbers and arguments reflect the reality of the business environment as much as social context and outline the need for external intervention into the emotional and cognitive response of the organizations and social groups to inclusion and equality. That said Affirmative Action is an essential element in the contemporary business and social environments.
Conclusion
The argument of the essay is that "Equal Opportunity Employment legislation is not enough, as formal legislation cannot change the individual mindset and unless companies and individuals change their worldview from anti-discriminatory to diversity-driven, we will still need Affirmative Action”. The findings of the secondary research and statistic evidence allow outlining the following critical facts. First, the general pupation is increasingly concerned with the growing level of racism and people believe that the issue grew bigger over the past ten years. Secondly, America still has a 30% gap between white and black Americans occupying similar or identical positions in the organizations. Finally, it is possible to observe that for many companies’ diversity management policies and programs are either the burden of legal compliance or the way to increase competitive advantage. In the society, where racial discrimination is eliminated to the root, diversity should not be an option, but the natural consequence of development. With the above in mind, the essay concludes that Equal Employment Opportunity is not enough to create truly inclusive and non-discriminating society and the society will for a long time need the legislation, such as Affirmative Action.
References
Bennet, M. J. (1979). Overcoming the Golden Rule: Sympathy and Empathy. Communication Yearbook.
Shen, J., Chanda, A., D'Netto, B., and Monga, M. (2009). Managing diversity through human resource management: an international perspective and conceptual framework. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 20(2), 235-251.
Goyette, B. and Scheller, A. (2014). 15 Charts That Prove We’re Far From Post-Racial. The Huffington Post. Retrieved 10 January 2017, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/07/02/civil-rights-act-anniversary-racism-charts_n_5521104.html
Fryer, R.G., Pager, D, and Spenkuch, J.L. (2011). Racial Disparities in Job Finding and Offered Wages. Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, 56(3), 633 – 689
Agiesta, J. (2015). Race and Reality in America: Five Key Findings’ [Online]. Retrieved 10 January 2017, from http://edition.cnn.com/2015/11/24/us/race-reality-key-findings/
