Comments on: Employee rights and responsibilities part 7 – The role of the law in Equal Opportunity http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/employee-rights-and-responsibilities-part-7-the-role-of-the-law-in-equal-opportunity Discussion about ethical issues relating to business Wed, 31 Aug 2011 15:10:53 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Andrew http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/employee-rights-and-responsibilities-part-7-the-role-of-the-law-in-equal-opportunity#comment-1820 Andrew Tue, 06 Jan 2009 13:31:44 +0000 http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/?p=212#comment-1820 Thanks Robyn/Karen, With respect to the issue which you both raise, I would certainly think that the makeup of the personnel of a firm would be a good indicator of organizational performance with respect to equality of opportunity. In the vast majority of circumstances, if one gender (or race, religion etc.) is disproportiately overrepresented within senior roles, then it is highly likely that some form of discrimination is occurring somewhere along the line. This is particularly the case whereby there is nothing special about the nature of the employer or the industry in which they operate which would indicate any apparent justification for such an imbalance. That said, the appropriate make up of personnel may vary somewhat according to the nature of the individual organization and the industry in which it operates. Financial planning firms, for example may prefer an unusually high percentage of older workers, who may be more equipped to better understand the needs of their clientele. Political or religious organizations as well, could be expected to employ a high proportion of people whose beliefs and ideals are compatible with those of the organization. I am reminded of a short term work assignment which I completed back in 2004, where I worked for an Australian government organizations which provided grants to indigenous organizations to run programs for indigenous Australians. Given the nature of the organization, I thought it was most appropriate that indigenous Australians accounted for approximately half of our staff, in spite of the fact that indigenous Australians represent only tiny fraction of the overall Australian population. Where organizational makeup reflects any form of apparent imbalance, then in absence of an apparent reason or justification for the imbalance, I would say that discrimination of some form is evident. <abbr><em>Andrews last blog post..<a href="http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/heads-should-not-necessarily-role-this-time" rel="nofollow">Heads should not necessarily role - this time</a></abbr></em> Thanks Robyn/Karen,

With respect to the issue which you both raise, I would certainly think that the makeup of the personnel of a firm would be a good indicator of organizational performance with respect to equality of opportunity.

In the vast majority of circumstances, if one gender (or race, religion etc.) is disproportiately overrepresented within senior roles, then it is highly likely that some form of discrimination is occurring somewhere along the line. This is particularly the case whereby there is nothing special about the nature of the employer or the industry in which they operate which would indicate any apparent justification for such an imbalance.

That said, the appropriate make up of personnel may vary somewhat according to the nature of the individual organization and the industry in which it operates.

Financial planning firms, for example may prefer an unusually high percentage of older workers, who may be more equipped to better understand the needs of their clientele. Political or religious organizations as well, could be expected to employ a high proportion of people whose beliefs and ideals are compatible with those of the organization.

I am reminded of a short term work assignment which I completed back in 2004, where I worked for an Australian government organizations which provided grants to indigenous organizations to run programs for indigenous Australians.

Given the nature of the organization, I thought it was most appropriate that indigenous Australians accounted for approximately half of our staff, in spite of the fact that indigenous Australians represent only tiny fraction of the overall Australian population.

Where organizational makeup reflects any form of apparent imbalance, then in absence of an apparent reason or justification for the imbalance, I would say that discrimination of some form is evident.

Andrews last blog post..Heads should not necessarily role – this time

]]> By: Karen Swim http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/employee-rights-and-responsibilities-part-7-the-role-of-the-law-in-equal-opportunity#comment-1805 Karen Swim Mon, 05 Jan 2009 19:29:29 +0000 http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/?p=212#comment-1805 Andrew, great discussion of a tricky issue. I agree that the process must be fair and should not give preference to hire or not to hire based upon gender, race, politics, religion or other factors not related to how well someone can perform the job. The tricky part is how we ensure that fairness. If a firm's makeup is decidely unbalanced in gender, race, age or other does this inherently constitute lack of fairness or can the employer point to "capability and cultural fit" as suitable arguments? <abbr><em>Karen Swims last blog post..<a href="http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/WordsForHire/~3/503280204/" rel="nofollow">At the Intersection of Been There and Looking Ahead</a></abbr></em> Andrew, great discussion of a tricky issue. I agree that the process must be fair and should not give preference to hire or not to hire based upon gender, race, politics, religion or other factors not related to how well someone can perform the job. The tricky part is how we ensure that fairness. If a firm’s makeup is decidely unbalanced in gender, race, age or other does this inherently constitute lack of fairness or can the employer point to “capability and cultural fit” as suitable arguments?

Karen Swims last blog post..At the Intersection of Been There and Looking Ahead

]]> By: Robyn McMaster http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/employee-rights-and-responsibilities-part-7-the-role-of-the-law-in-equal-opportunity#comment-1800 Robyn McMaster Mon, 05 Jan 2009 14:48:58 +0000 http://www.goodhonestdollar.com/?p=212#comment-1800 Andrew, you developed a fairly comprehensive overview of ways to make hiring process both fair to employers and candidates, too. Recognizing that Equal Opportunity must be fair to all is critical. The litmus test would be the overall make-up of employees in a firm. If there were all one gender in management, for instance, there would be a problem. <abbr><em>Robyn McMasters last blog post..<a href="http://brainbasedbiz.blogspot.com/2009/01/falling-asleep-on-job-take-hike.html" rel="nofollow">Falling asleep on the Job - Take a Hike</a></abbr></em> Andrew, you developed a fairly comprehensive overview of ways to make hiring process both fair to employers and candidates, too. Recognizing that Equal Opportunity must be fair to all is critical.

The litmus test would be the overall make-up of employees in a firm. If there were all one gender in management, for instance, there would be a problem.

Robyn McMasters last blog post..Falling asleep on the Job – Take a Hike

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