Affirmative Action Essays (933 words) - Discrimination, Free Essays

Affirmative Action Essays (933 words) - Discrimination, Free Essays Affirmative Action AFFIRMATIVE ACTION I. We didnt land on Plymouth Rock, my brothers and sisters Plymouth Rock landed on us! Malcolm Xs observation is brought out by the facts of American History. Snatched from their native land, transported thousands of miles in a nightmare of disease and death and sold into slavery, blacks were reduced to the legal status of farm animals. Even after emancipation, blacks were segregated from whites in some states by law, and by social practice almost everywhere. American apartheid continued for another century. In 1954 the Supreme Court declared state-compelled segregation in schools unconstitutional, and it followed up that decision with others that struck down many forms of official segregation. Still, discrimination survived, and in most southern states blacks were either discouraged or prohibited from exercising their right to vote. Not until the 1960s was compulsory segregation finally and effectively challenged. Between 1964 and 1968 Congress passed the most sweeping civil rights legislation since the end of the Civil War. It banned discrimination in employment, public accommodations (hotels, motels, restaurants, etc.), and housing; it also guaranteed voting rights for blacks in areas suspected of disenfranchising blacks. Today, several agencies in the federal government exercise sweeping powers to enforce these civil rights measures. But is that enough? Equality of condition between blacks and whites seems as elusive as ever. The black unemployment rate is double that of whites, and the percentage of black families living in poverty is nearly four times that of whites. Only a small percentage of blacks ever make it into medical school or law schools. Advocates of affirmative action have focused upon these differences to support their argument that it is no longer enough just to stop discrimination. Liberal Democrats feel that the damage done by three centuries of racism now has to be remedied, they argue, and effective remediation requires a policy of affirmative action. At the heart of affirmative action is the use of numerical goals. Opponents call them racial quotas. Whatever the name, what they imply is the setting aside of a certain number of jobs or positions for blacks or other historically oppressed groups. Conservative Republicans charge that affirmative action really amounts to reverse discrimination, that it penalizes innocent people simply because they are white, that it often results in unqualified appointments, and that it ends up harming instead of helping blacks. The issue of preferences to address historical patterns of racial, ethnic, and gender discrimination has received a great deal of attention nationally. Whether in government contracts, private sector hiring, college admissions, or state hiring practices, opponents in the issue have engaged in often-heated debates. In Michigan, legislation to limit or eliminate affirmative action has been introduced this session. A good example of this legislation was proposed on March 18,1998 and it is called SJR N (S-2). This resolution proposed an amendment to the Michigan Constitution to prohibit discrimination based on sex or ethnicity and to prohibit the state and its political subdivisions from using religion, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin as a basis for discriminating against or giving preferential treatment to any individual or group in employment, public education, or public contracting. The present system violates the fundamental principle of equal protection of the law against discrimination on the basis of immutable characteristics of race, sex, color, ethnicity, and national origin. SJR N (S-2) was intended to end this practice and return Michigan to the goal of a colorblind society. II. SJR N (S-2) is on the Conservative side of things, in that, the legislation is trying to stop reverse racism. There really is no moderate way to look at affirmative action; you can either be for it or against it. Sen. Bill Bullard Jr. was the chair and sponsor of this bill, but when he met with the other members of this committee it was stated in the minutes of the meeting that the issue will not be voted on today, nor does he (Bill Bullard) intend to press for a vote in the Legislature this year. There will be future opportunities for all who wish to contribute to this dialogue to have their views heard. The committee then had a long list of testimony from those who opposed SJR N (S-2).

6 Things You Must Do Before That Successful Interview

6 Things You Must Do Before That Successful Interview Getting an interview feels like a victory, doesn’t it? It means you’re one step closer to that job, and makes a black-and-white online job posting seem like more of a reality. After you do your happy I-got-the-interview dance, it’s time to start thinking ahead for the interview itself. Here are six things you can do ahead of time to set yourself up right for the big day.1. Plan your outfit.This doesn’t just apply to fashionistas. Figuring out ahead of time what you’ll be wearing can take one major thing off your mind the day of the interview. It also lets you plan ahead for small (but crucial) touches like making sure your clothes are cleaned and pressed on time or that your lucky interview shoes are shined up and ready to walk into the room like a boss.2. Get your talking points in order.Review the job listing, and remind yourself how your skills and experience dovetail with what the company’s seeking in this role. Then, be sure to practice working those into a conversation. Naturally.  No one wants to be hit with a barrage of canned-sounding bullet points†¦ especially if you were asked to name a few of your strengths, and you respond with a memorized monologue about your achievements from your last job.3. Take another pass at your resume.You should have reviewed your resume before you applied for the job (please tell me you did!), but even so, take a fresh look at it. Is there anything you can tighten up before you walk into the interview as an ambassador for yourself and your work achievements? Once you feel good about the content and of your resume and have caught every typo, make sure to print copies (on high-quality paper, whenever possible) to take with you on interview day.4. Put on your researcher hat.Learn as much as you possibly can about the company before you go in. Can you tell anything about their corporate culture from their social media accounts? Have they been in the news for anything lately? If there’s been a scandal, obviously don’t eagerly bring it up in the interview. But if the company has been involved in something cool or newsworthy, it’s good to have that info stored and ready to go.5. Practice your smile.Spend a few moments rehearsing your interview smile in the mirror each night before you go to bed. Work on your most confident, pleasant smile, and be ready to break it out for every  person you meet during the interview (receptionists, assistants, interviewers). You can also practice with loved ones, or take some selfies to review and find the best â€Å"hire me† grin.6. Have your thank-you letters ready to go.The night before your interview, type up a template for your thank-you notes to your interviewers. That way, after you walk out of the interview you just have to enter a few crucial details (the person’s name, email address, and ideally a specific reference or two to the conversation you had), then hit send. Easy peasy.A little extra care and planning as you get ready for the interview can be the edge you need to get you to that next step: the job offer. After all, the interview is the only thing keeping you from an even better happy dance: the I-got-the-job one.

Human Resource Management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 9

Human Resource Management - Essay Example It is essential to have a workforce that understands cultures of various regions and markets; therefore, a multi-talented and multicultural workforce is necessary in modern businesses. As a human resource manager in the business, I would ensure that recruitment policies allow admission and employment of multicultural workers. This will make the business able to penetrate different markets and regions in its expansion approaches. One of the advantages of this index is that it provides the human resource department with various financial-performance metrics. In addition, it helps business managers to make effective assessments of their investments in human resources. Alternatively, the index is essential in testing the belief of whether it is profitable to manage human capital effectively in a business. This way, the business can determine the most reliable pay structures for its human resources and other benefits for them to be productive. In the business practice, I would make use of the index in determining efficiency of employees in order to know the pay structures that should be assigned to different workers. This will be essential in paying employees and giving them benefits commensurate to their abilities and dedication to the business. Outsourcing, as a business practice is defined as the act of contracting out various business processes to other external parties. In some case, the process of outsourcing requires transferring the employees of a business, as well as its assets to another firm. As businesses expand, the need to focus on its core competencies becomes paramount; in this case, its human resources can be strained. Outsourcing some of the business practices becomes essential in helping the business to put emphasis on its core competencies to succeed. In the human resource department, I can use outsourcing to ensure that as the business grows, some of its activities like product promotion are outsourced to other expert groups so that