"Affirmative action: A policy that goes beyond equal employment opportunity by requiring organizations to comply with the law and correct past discriminatory practices by increasing the numbers of minorities and women in specific positions." (Bohlander & Snell, 2007) By implementing affirmative action policies this company will be ensuring that members of society typically discriminated against are receiving fair treatment in the hiring and employment process. Also by initiating these policies this company will be in compliance with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. There are several benefits and some drawbacks of this policy that will be addressed here.
By following these guidelines set forth by the EEOC this company will be in compliance with their laws governing fair employment acts.
"1. Issue a written equal employment opportunity policy and affirmative action commitment.
2. Appoint a top official with responsibility and authority to direct and implement the program.
3. Publicize the policy and affirmative action commitment.
4. Survey present minority and female employment by department and job classification.
5. Develop goals and timetables to improve utilization of minorities and women in each area where underutilization has been identified.
6. Develop and implement specific programs to achieve goals.
7. Establish an internal audit and reporting system to monitor and evaluate progress in each aspect of the program.
8. Develop supportive in-house and community programs."(Bohlander & Snell, 2007)
By implementing Affirmative Action in the company this will effectively promote fair treatment in employment. This shows an active role in demonstrating that this company is interested in the progress of the employees and that this company is a good faith company who wants to comply with the laws and provide for equal employment regardless of gender, race, creed, disability, or age. These policies provide for added protection in assuring that the managers do not violate any of the EEOC laws and that the company avoids lawsuits and fines.
There are some drawbacks to this policy such as reverse discrimination where an non discriminated person discriminated against due to a perceived unfair advantage given minorities; however courts have ruled in favor of companies who voluntarily initiate Affirmative Action polices to try and make up for previous imbalances and providing a chance for minorities to receive fairer treatment than what they were given in the past. Furthermore Affirmative action programs have come under fire for the following reasons:
- "Affirmative action has not consistently resulted in improvement of the employment status of protected groups.
- Individuals hired under affirmative action programs sometimes feel prejudged and assumed capable only of inferior performance, and, in fact, these individuals are sometimes viewed by others as "tokens."
- Affirmative action programs of either voluntary or forced compliance have failed to effectively assimilate protected classes into an organization's workforce.
- Preferences shown toward one protected class may create conflicts between other minority groups." (Bohlander & Snell, 2007)
Still these arguments can be dissuade when one considers that these programs are necessary to promote diversity in a growing diverse society and that such practices help to correct past imbalances when it comes to minorities.
It is important for the company and its managers to value diversity in the workforce by promoting equality and by implementing programs such as Affirmative Action voluntarily this company is showing that it is a company committed to fair business practices and equal opportunity employment.
Once the company commits to this change it will find that having a diverse workforce will give an advantage that otherwise would not have had. These advantages will become apparent when the company realizes that employing a diverse workforce will increase knowledge of diverse markets. In the global markets the company will have a competitive understanding of different races and cultures as demonstrated in the workforce. "Affirmative action goes beyond providing equal employment opportunity to employees. Affirmative action requires employers to become proactive and correct areas of past discrimination. This is accomplished by employing protected classes for jobs in which they are underrepresented. The employer's goal is to have a balanced internal workforce representative of the employer's relevant labor market." (Bohlander & Snell, 2007)
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