A634.4.4.RB - Is Affirmative Action Ethical?

The idea of affirmative action seemed well thought out and plausible, but in practice, this may not have been the case. LaFollette’s (2007) definition of affirmative action is “the practice of giving special consideration to minorities and women in hiring and school placement” (p. 87).  When broken down into its simplistic form it means that when faced with two candidates who are equally qualified then consideration would be given to that which is in the minority.  Can this approach be ethical?  It may seem that there is a preference given to the minority, which can seem to be unfair. 

Those that are against affirmative action feel that the policy is unfair and is actually reverse discrimination.  Gu, Mcferran, Aquino, and Kim, T. G. (2014) stated, “Negative reactions toward the use of AA in organizations typically arise from the perception that AA-influenced decisions are unfair” (p 722).  In many cases, people believe that when a person of a minority is hired that they are so due to affirmative action instead of actually being qualified.  This misconception only adds fuel to the fire for those who believe affirmative action to be unfair, and in actuality, it can be hard to prove this theory either way.  Yukl (2013) offered a partial solution in that affirmative action would be most successful is all members of the company understand it and it is used in its intended form, without becoming reverse discrimination.

Burns and Schapper (2007) found that there are “strong ethical grounds to reassert the value of affirmative action programmes in global efforts to eradicate systemic discrimination and disadvantage” (p. 369).  The idea behind creating an equal playing field seems logical, however, in practice it doesn’t always work out.  Attempting to make up for the sins of the past is a huge task if even possible.  While the idea of affirmative action was in the right place, its execution may not have been the best. 

The argument for affirmative action often includes the idea of equaling the playing field for minorities.  LaFollette (2007) stated that we “must undercut racist habits and corral racist institutions, which affirmative action is a reasonable and effective way to do both” (p. 97).  In this belief ,the act of affirmative action alone can dispel racism and gender inequality.  In order for that to be true discrimination has to be active and obvious.  Within this theory lies the idea that when two applicants have equal qualification and skill the tiebreaker would go to the minority, it also encompasses the idea of meeting certain quotas in regards to race and gender. 

In both arguments, for and against, affirmative action there are some assumptions that are made, such as there is a need for a level playing field, the quotas are helpful in creating this and having incentives for maintaining a certain percentage of minorities in certain positions.  Though often times what happens is that other employees outside the hiring process assuming minorities are only offered the job because of their gender or race, leaving the white population feeling discriminated against themselves.  While I understand the reasoning behind affirmative action I’m not sure it is the best way to achieve equality in the workplace.  I believe it opens up more interpretive issues than it solves.                

Burns, P., & Schapper, J. (2007). The Ethical Case for Affirmative Action. J Bus Ethics

Journal of Business Ethics, 83(3), 369-379. doi:10.1007/s10551-007-9625-8

Gu, J., Mcferran, B., Aquino, K., & Kim, T. G. (2014). What makes affirmative action-

based hiring decisions seem (un)fair? A test of an ideological explanation for fairness judgments. Journal of Organizational Behavior J. Organiz. Behav., 35(5), 722-745. doi:10.1002/job.1927

LaFollette, H. (2007). The Practice of Ethics. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, Ltd.

Yukl, G. (2013). Leadership in organizations (8th ed.). Boston: Pearson.