Pros and Cons of Affirmative Action - Essay Example

This paper tends to discuss the pros and cons of affirmative action in the workplace. Pros Affirmative action tends to eliminate preferential treatment, because it respects the applicant’s right to be treated on an equal basis as others. According to Anderson (2008), affirmative action policies efficiently discourage such cultural norms within the workplace that give rise to group-based disadvantages and inequalities. Affirmative action promotes an ideal environment of inclusive community, where multiple cultures and ethnic groups work in harmony with each other, none preferred over the other.

Candidates and employees are not classified according to their formal characteristics like gender, race, and sexual orientation. Anderson (2008) states that, affirmative action can be considered as a corrective or a compensating action for all past racial and gender discrimination occurring in workplaces. It is important for the establishment of a democratic society where each and every person is valued. Affirmative action also encourages a diverse set of participants to take part in research, learning, and discourse.

In the workplace, affirmative action has enabled women and minorities to stand at an equal position as men and other ethnic groups. Hence, a more diverse work atmosphere comes into place. This diversity has helped managers and businessmen to gain advantage from a diverse set of possible solutions, proposed by diverse workforce, to problems arising in the workplace. Also, when companies hire multi-cultural employees, they are in fact enabling themselves to deal with multi-cultural customers by removing language and ethnic barriers between employees and customers.

This is advantageous for the companies in the long run. Moreover, companies that employ affirmative action policies are more likely to get government contracts, as is stated in the Executive Order put into place by President Lyndon B. Johnson. The Executive Order demands that all companies which acquire government contracts are supposed to employ affirmative action policies in their workplaces. Cons The main disadvantage that arises from affirmative action policies in the workplaces is reverse discrimination (Dauntigney, 2012).

We know that white males belong to the historically dominant group, which has always gained advantage over the black population, other minority ethnic groups, and women. With the implementation of affirmative action policies in the workplaces, white males are very likely to suffer from reverse discrimination, even when they are eligible enough for the post. This can also have a negative impact upon the confidence level of women and other minority groups, when they see that the historically dominant group is being disadvantaged.

However, this practice of reverse discrimination is very rare, but the chances are still present. High turnover should also be expected when companies hire employees based on affirmative action policies. This is because, when hiring employees, companies may end up giving preference to candidates with low proficiency level as compared to really skilled candidates, because of the implication to satisfy affirmative action policies. Hence, it may happen that more skilled candidates are disadvantaged, which results in hiring of less skilled workers.

Another major disadvantage that