Affirmative action plan as a management tool Group Assignment, MBA 9th batch, Port City International University

1. Course Title : Human Resource Development
Course Code : HRM 606
Assignment Topic : Affirmative Action Plan
Date Of Submission : 31/03/2017
Submitted To Submitted By
Prof. A K M Tafzal Hoque
Adjunct Faculty,
Dept. of
Business Administration
Port City International
University,
&
Professor,
Dept. of
Human Resource &
Management,
University of Chittagong
1. Md. Miftahul Huda Sharifee
ID No : MBA 00905450
2. Mohammad Shafaet Karim
ID No : MBA 00905439
3. Md. Mostafizur Rahman
ID No : MBA 01005510
4. Rahul Chandra Nath
ID No : MBA 00905451
5. Sadia Akter
ID No : MBA 00805374
6. Razia Sultana
ID No : MBA 00905452

2. Affirmative Action Plan
Definition:
An Affirmative Action plan or program is a management tool designed to ensure
equal employment opportunity. A central premise underlying affirmative action is
a that, over time, absent discrimination, a contractor's workforce will generally
reflect the gender, racial, and ethnic profile of the labor pools from which the
contractor recruits and selects.
Affirmative Action programs contain a diagnostic component which includes a
number of quantitative analyses designed to evaluate the composition of the
workforce of the contractor and compare it to the composition of the relevant
labor pools.
Affirmative Action programs also include action-oriented programs. If women and
minorities are not being employed at a rate to be expected given their availability
in the relevant labor pool, the contractor's affirmative action program includes
specific practical steps designed to address this underutilization.
Effective Affirmative Action programs also include internal auditing and reporting
systems as a means of measuring the contractor's progress toward achieving the
workforce that would be expected in the absence of discrimination.
An Affirmative Action program also ensures equal employment opportunity by
institutionalizing the contractor's commitment to equality in every aspect of the
employment process. Therefore, as part of its Affirmative Action program, a

3. contractor monitors and examines its employment decisions and compensation
systems to evaluate the impact of those systems on women and minorities.
An Affirmative Action program is, thus, more than a paperwork exercise. An
Affirmative Action programincludes those policies, practices, and procedures that
the contractor implements to ensure that all qualified applicants and employees
are receiving an equal opportunity for recruitment, selection, advancement, and
every other term and privilege associated with employment. Affirmative Action,
ideally, is a part of the way the contractor regularly conducts its business. OFCCP
has found that when an Affirmative Action program is approached from this
perspective, as a powerful management tool, there is a positive correlation
between the presence of Affirmative Action and the absence of discrimination.
Background of Affirmative Action Plan:
AsPresidentLyndonJohnsonsaidin 1965,"Youdonottakea personwho,foryears,
has been hobbled by chains and liberate him, bring him up to the starting line of a
race and then say you are free to compete with all the others, and still just believe
that you have been completely fair."
President Johnson's speech eloquently stated the rationale behind the
contemporary use of affirmative action programs to achieve equal opportunity,
especially in the fields of employment and higher education.
The emphasis is on opportunity: affirmative action programs are meant to break
downbarriers,both visible and invisible, to level the playing field, and to makesure
everyoneis given an equal break. They are not meant to guarantee equal results --
but instead proceed on the common-sensenotion that if equality of opportunity

4. werea reality, AfricanAmericans,women,peoplewith disabilities andother groups
facing discrimination would be fairly represented in the nation's work force and
educational institutions.
The debate over affirmative action demarcates a philosophical divide, separating
those with sharply different views of the "American dilemma" -- how the nation
should treat African Americans, other people of color and women. This division
centers on a number of questions: to what extent discrimination and bias persist,
especially in a systemicway;to whatdegree affirmativeaction programshavebeen
effective in providing otherwise unavailable opportunities in education,
employment, and business;and to whatextent affirmativeaction programsappear
to unduly benefit African Americans and other people of color at the expense of
the white majority.
The continuing need for affirmative action is demonstrated by the data. For
example, the National Asian and Pacific American Legal Consortium reports that
although white men make up only 48% of the college-educated workforce, they
hold over 90% of the top jobs in the news media, 96% of CEO positions, 86% of law
firm partnerships, and 85% of tenured college faculty positions.
Affirmative action is not, as some critics’ charge, a uniquely modern concept
fashionedby contemporary liberals in defiance of historyor tradition. Although the
techniques that we now call "affirmative action" are of fairly recent design, the
conceptual recognition of the need to take affirmative, or positive legal action to
redressdiscrimination'simpact, rather than simply ending discrimination, hasbeen
around since the Civil War. During Reconstruction (the period immediately after

5. the Civil War), the Constitution was amended and other federal initiatives, such as
the creation of the Freedman's Bureau, were undertaken to establish equal
opportunity for the former slaves. These initiatives were at least modestly
successful, bringing about African American participation in elections for the first
time.
Sporadic efforts to remedy the results of hundreds of years of slavery, segregation
and denial of opportunity have been made since the end of the Civil War.
A significant number of African Americans held public office, including two U.S.
senators and 20 members of the House, between 1870 and 1900. But when the
federal governmentwithdrew its supportfor Reconstruction in the late 1800s, the
gains made by African Americans were quickly stripped away and replaced by a
patchwork system of legal segregation (including, in some instances, legal
segregation of Latinos, Asians, and Native Americans as well). By 1896, in Plessy v.
Ferguson, the Supreme Court had upheld the cornerstone segregationist doctrine
of "separatebut equal" - i.e., ruling that the Constitution permitted governments
to requireseparation of the races in schools, public transportation, and elsewhere,
so long as the opportunities offered the separate races were characterized as
equal.
In the modern era, the concept of affirmativeaction was reborn on June 25, 1941,
when President Franklin Roosevelt -- seeking to avert a march on Washington
organized by civil rights pioneer A. Philip Randolph -- issued Executive Order
8802 requiring defense contractors to pledge nondiscrimination in employment in
government-funded projects. Two years later, President Roosevelt extended

6. coverage of the executive order to all federal contractors and subcontractors. In a
1947 report, the President's Committee on Fair Employment Practices found that,
while African Americans comprised only three percent of the workers in defense
industries in 1942, their number had increased to eight percent in 1945. Butit also
found "the wartime gains of Negro, Mexican-American and Jewish workers . . .
began to disappear as soon as wartime controls were relaxed."
Successivepresidents, under pressurefrom the African American community and
civil rights advocates, continued the effort to increase minority employment
opportunities and end job discrimination. It was not until President Kennedy
issued Executive Order No. 10925, requiring not only that federal contractors
pledge non-discrimination but that they "take affirmative action to ensure" equal
opportunity,thatthe now-fractiousphrasecameinto popular discourse.Kennedy's
order also included penalties -- including suspension of a contract -- for non-
compliance. This was succeeded by another executive order (Executive Order
11246) issued by President Lyndon Johnson, along with the creation of the Office
of Federal Contract Compliance in the Department of Labor to enforce its non-
discrimination and affirmative action requirements. The Executive Order was
amended in 1967 to include prohibitions on sex discrimination by federal
contractors, along with a requirement that they engage in good faith efforts to
expand job opportunities for women. Executive Order 11246 remains among the
mosteffective and far-reaching federalprograms for expanding equalopportunity.
Implementation of affirmativeaction started slowly,with the constructionindustry
the site of one of the first tests. In 1965, the Office of Federal Contract
Compliance created government-wide programs to redress the years of

7. discrimination in the construction industry. The series of affirmative
action programs was designed to boost minority employment by emphasizing
hiring results in federally funded construction jobs.
Inthe 1970s,TheVietnamEra Veterans ReadjustmentAssistanceActof 1972called
for "thepreferentialemployment of disabled veteransand veteransof the Vietnam
era ... who are otherwise qualified." The act was amended a year later to require
federal agencies and contractors to take affirmative action in employment and
promotion for people with disabilities. These changes underscored the use
of affirmativeaction as a balancing of competitive interests. Affirmativeaction was
understood to be the creation of opportunities to compete and not an assurance
of outcome or success.
The various programs culminated in the "Philadelphia Plan," implemented under
President Nixon. This plan required contractors doing business with the federal
government to commit themselves to self-determined numerical goals for
minority. By withstanding challenges both in Congress and the courts, the
Philadelphia Plan helped establish affirmative action as a way of life for American
employers. Indeed, employers often embraced affirmative action as a good
business practice, enabling them to tap into larger, more diverse, and more
qualified pools of talent.
A key example of business support for affirmative action came early in Ronald
Reagan's second term and fromwhat would be considered a very unlikely source -
- the conservativeNational Association of Manufacturers (NAM), which represents
13,500 companies. At issue was a split in the administration over proposals by

8. President Reagan's most conservativeappointees to revise and weaken Executive
Order 11246 requiring employers with federal contracts to take positive steps --
including establishing goals and timetables -- to include minorities and women in
their work force.
NAM, much to the surprise of the administration's conservatives, weighed in on
behalf of keeping the executive order intact. In a letter to President Reagan, the
business group said it "believes the current executive order provides the
framework for an affirmative action policy" and argued that "the business
community is concerned that the elimination of goals and timetables could result
in confusing compliance standards on federal, state and municipal levels and a
proliferation of reverse discrimination suits."
AAP Policy:
Itis the policy to provideequal employment opportunities without regard to race,
color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status,
sexualorientation, genetic information or any other protected characteristic under
applicable law. This policy relates to all phases of employment, including, but not
limited to, recruiting, employment, placement, promotion, transfer, demotion,
reduction of workforce and termination, rates of pay or other forms of
compensation, selection for training, the use of all facilities, and participation in all
company-sponsoredemployeeactivities. Provisionsinapplicablelawsprovidingfor
bona fide occupational qualifications, business necessity or age limitations will be
adhered to by the company where appropriate.
As part of the company’s equal employment opportunity policy, it will also take
affirmative action as called for by applicable laws and Executive Orders to ensure

9. that minority group individuals, females, disabled veterans, recently separated
veterans, other protected veterans, Armed Forces service medal veterans, and
qualified disabled persons are introduced into our workforce and considered for
promotional opportunities.
Employees andapplicants shallnotbe subjectedto harassment,intimidation or any
type of retaliation because they have (1) filed a complaint; (2) assisted or
participated in an investigation, compliance review, hearing or any other activity
related to the administration of any federal, state or local law requiring equal
employment opportunity; (3) opposed any act or practice made unlawful by any
federal, state or local law requiring equal opportunity; or (4) exercised any other
legal right protected by federal, state or local law requiring equal opportunity.
The above-mentioned policies shall be periodically brought to the attention of
supervisors and shallbe appropriately administered. Itis the responsibility of each
supervisor of the company to ensure affirmative implementation of these policies
to avoid any discrimination in employment. All employees are expected to
recognize these policies and cooperate with their implementation. Violation of
these policies is a disciplinary offense.
The Affirmative Action Officer has been assigned to direct the establishment and
monitor the implementation of personnel procedures to guide our affirmative
action programthroughout [Company Name]. A notice explaining the company’s
policy will remain posted.
Affirmative Action Plan in Bangladesh:

10. The ‘Principle of equality’ entails non-differential treatment for all human beings.
However, it “does not mean identical treatment in every instance” because in a
society a certain part of the population may face more discrimination than others.
Therefore, the principle may sometimes require states to takeaffirmativeaction to
diminish or eliminate conditions that cause or help to perpetuate discrimination
against minority groups. In Bangladesh, article 28 (4) of the
Constitution incorporates affirmative action for the benefit of certain groups of
people as this Article provides- “Nothing in this article shall preventthe State from
making special provision in favor of women or children or for the advancement of
any backward section of citizens” . This article, after briefly discussing the
background for incorporating theprovision, by applying CriticalLegalStudies’ (CLS)
view, firstly argues that the affirmative action provision became discriminatory
with respect to indigenous people as it categorizes indigenous people of
Bangladesh as ‘backward section”. This allows dominant class i.e. Bangalees to
impose their standard of equality on the indigenous people. Secondly, by using
Thompson’s language, the article will present an alternative view that the
affirmative action can, in general, facilitates positive measures for the indigenous
people and there are beneficial minimal restraints against the ruler. Finally, by
assessing thesetwo views, the article will conclude that though, affirmativeaction
has some positive implications, however, under the notion of backwardness; the
affirmative action provision in the Constitution instead of ensuring equality
furthers the discrimination against the indigenous people.
The philosophy behind incorporating an affirmative action provision can be found
in the preamble of the constitution, which speaks of ‘equality and justice(political,
economic and social) for all. Article-28 (4) of the constitution which empowers the

11. government to take measures for the advancement of any backward section of
citizens is an actualization of the aspiration echoed in the preamble. This postulates
that the said law underpins positive implications for the backward section.
In the context of these assumed benefits of the said law, from CLS’s perspective,
however, the law (in general), is not neutral, but instead reflects the ideology of
the dominant class, who manipulate the law to reflect their own interests in order
to perpetuate their dominance over the powerless. From this perspective, if the
law in general is a tool of class power, then it can be assumed that the affirmative
action provision also reflects the interest of the dominant class. Against this
assumption, a question may arise whether the CLS view of general law is also
applicable in caseof a particular/special law. In this backdrop, a fresh Critical Legal
analysis of the provision does raise a concern. In particular, the existence of the
phrase any backwards sections of citizens in the provision can be seen as highly
problematic, because by categorizing a certain part of the population, e.g.
indigenous people as backward, it reaffirms the fact of class division (i.e. superior
and inferior class). This class division is problematic because it empowers the
dominant class to ascertain the standard of equality for the inferior class. In this
context, MacKinnon’s view on gender equality will facilitate to comprehend the
merit of the above proposition. Mackinnon observed that with men’s dominance
in the society, the gender equality for woman is measured with reference to male
standard (i.e. either to be treated same as men or different from men). Therefore,
the baseline is the standard set is actually a superficialand hegemonic standard. In
Bangladesh, the government has actually opted for such dominant approach to
define equality for indigenous people. Under such approach, the Government
(representedmostly by Bangalees) tries to equalizethe indigenous byputting them

12. into the shoes and coats of the Bangalees. An analysis of the Government’s
affirmative action program can further substantiate the above proposition. In
Bangladesh, special measures for indigenous people are confined within the
allocation of quota facilities in education, public services,etc. Thesefacilities, while
can be seen as mere incentives that benefit few indigenous people, nevertheless,
failing to diminish the level of inequalities as a whole.
To diminish inequality measures must be taken in line with indigenous’ way of
equality as the reality for the Bangalees and the indigenous people is not identical.
Their historyof socioeconomic struggleand the notion of life do not align together.
For indigenous people, equality means to be treated differently rather than as
equal to the dominant class. To ensure an indigenous’ way of equality requires
acknowledging their right: to self-determination, to maintain and strengthen their
distinct political, legal, economic, social and cultural institutions, and the right to
determine their own identity or membership, etc. However, the type of measures
taken by the governmentfor their equality appearsto be morecompatible with the
dominant class’ version of equality, one that, they believe to be suitable for the
backward class. As a result, the affirmative action provision and measures that
follow became discriminatory, as it does not recognize indigenous people’s way of
equality.
In contrastto above argument, which is based on CLS’s view of the law, the paper
now will assess the affirmative action provision from Thompson’s view of law.
Thompson observed that although the law mediates the class relations and in
general favoring the rulers, but does not make the law as equivalent to class
power. This is because the law mediates these class relations through legal form

13. which itself inhibits the power of the ruler and affords some protections to the
powerless. Besides, the law inherently embodies the principles of equity and
universality. What Thompson was implying by pointing these inherent
characteristics of law is whilst a law may apparently favor the dominant class, it
also provides a means to fight against them. From Thompson’s perspective, it can
be argued that a specific provisionof law (e.g. the affirmativeaction provision)also
possess the inherent characteristics of the law (i.e. equity, justness and inhibit
ruler’s action). In this context, the provision that incorporated for the benefit of
backward section not only facilitates positive measures for indigenous but also
provides a means to bargain better treatment fromthe dominant class. Moreover,
its absence would actually benefit the government because in such case the
governmentwould have no obligation to do anything for the benefit of indigenous
people whatsoever. The term backward, therefore, can be seen as a linguistic
limitation of the provision. However, it does not debar indigenous people of
Bangladesh to make their claims for justice through courts to change the very
nature of the measures to be taken by the Government.
ADVANTAGES OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION :
Affirmative action yieldsmany positive advantagesfor a workplacesuch as
increasing opportunity, diversity, creativity and productivity.
Increasing Diversity
Affirmativeaction is intended to diversify the workplace. In this case,
diversity refersnot just to racial diversity, butalso gender diversity, age
diversity and a general diversity in experiencesand lifestyles. A large part of
the AffirmativeAction’s laws specify minority percentages for employment. This

14. means that companies cannot discriminate a person or refuse to hire a person,
solely based on their skin color or sexual orientation.
Increasing Greater Opportunities tothe People
Children of minority are much more likely to be subjected to poverty, violence,
and other disrupting things. This greatly impacts the education and schools of
these communities. These laws help to give these students the help and boosts
that they need to succeed in the world.
Provides a big boost interms of Productivity
From a company’s position, affirmative action provides a big boost in terms of
productivity. This is because employees are aware of the expanded pool of
applicants ready to apply for their job. Additionally, according to Reskin,
productivity increases alongside diversity because employees must get creative
when working with co-workers from social groups with whom they have not
worked before. This creativity in terms of interoffice communication bleeds over
into creativity in terms of the execution of work.
ProtectionfromHatred
While nothing can shield a person from all the hatred that they will encounter in
their life, theseAffirmativeactions lawshelp tremendously.They enforceharshand
strict punishments on anyone who is found guilty of assaulting a person solely
based on their race, sexual orientation, or gender. This makes many people think
twice before committing violence or hatred filled act.
DISADVANTAGES OF AFFIRMATIVE ACTION :

15. Reverse Racism
Racism is a two way street, as many people know. Affirmativeaction laws only
protect one side of the fence, while the other side is left feeling like the bad guy
no matter what the circumstance. Itgives people a sense of entitlement and a
feeling of anger towards the majority.
Low Standards to be followedfor Accountability
The standards for education and employees are greatly lowered. This is very
negative because these people should be able to operate underneath the same
standards as everyoneelse. This may in turn cause more racismto occur among
people who are angry with the special treatment of some.
A Condescending Action
Affirmativeaction gives special treatment and protection to the minorities of
America. This makes many people feel like they cannot succeed on their own and
need special assistancejustperformnormalfunction of daily life.
OutdatedPolicies
The majority of the problems that existed during the Civil Rights movement,
which is when Affirmativeaction was signed into affect, no longer exist in today’s
world. Issues likesegregation, widespread discrimination, and many other things
have been eliminated. There is no longer a need to give minority groups special
treatment, because they are quickly becoming a part of the majority as well.
Conclusion:
In Bangladesh, an affirmative action program has existed for twenty years - with
minimal results. The quotas are only applicable to public sector jobs, which

16. constitute only 15 % of employment. There are no mechanisms to enforce
affirmative action in the private sector. In Bangladesh, there are three ranks of
employment: the highest jobs are officer level jobs, the middle level jobs are
"stock" level, and the third are a collection of low ranking jobs. Public sector
employment quotas for women are 10% for women at the officer level and 15 %
for women at the stock level and below.
Within the public sector, employers may make 45% of the job decisions on merit.
Ofthe remaining 55%,anemployer mustallocate affirmativeaction hires according
to the following formula: 30% of the jobs go to Freedom Fighters, 10% go to
women, 10% go to "backward districts," and 10% go to tribal peoples. The policy
has been in place since1976, women in Bangladesh still representonly 10 % of the
formallabor force.This is notenough - Bangladesh needs to worktowardachieving
a critical mass of women in employment sectors.