Verified Document

Affirmative Action Is The Nation's Term Paper

The continued subordination of blacks in the work place is due to persistent discrimination at all stages of the employment process, from recruitment to interview, job offer, and promotion. Studies conducted in the 1990's by the Urban Institute in Chicago, show significant levels of discrimination in the labor market against black and Hispanic job applicants. The discrimination that previous generations of blacks experienced in the labor market also harms modern blacks' employment prospects today. An important aspect of the labor market disadvantage suffered by African-Americans is their high unemployment rate. Unemployment rates for African-Americans are twice as high as those are for whites. The problem is particularly bad for eighteen- to nineteen-year-old blacks, which suffer unemployment rates above 30%. In a study conducted by the Urban Institute of Chicago, researchers found that young white men were offered jobs 45% more often than the young black men were. This result reveals that some employers were not treating male minority job seekers equally with white males of similar qualifications. Additionally, whites received 52% more job offers than the Hispanics.

The inflation-corrected wages of white...

However, white men have not lost their superior position in the labor market: a substantial gap remains between their wages and those of white women and black men and women. Modest reductions have been made in that gap since 1967. Black men's wages were 69% of white men's in 1967. By 1976 their wages had risen to 79% of white men's. Since then, they have been losing rather than gaining ground on white men. White women gained no ground on white men until the early 1980s; they have been gaining in the years since. In 1995 their wages were 73% of white men's, compared with 6l percent in 1967. Black women have made gains throughout the period, but recently their gains have not matched those of white women. In 1995, black women's wages were 63% of white men's. Presently, current discrimination in the labor market causes black men to earn 12 to 15% less than white men for the same position.
The disparity in black men's wages relative to white men's over the last twenty years indicate that whatever help blacks have received from affirmative action has been modest at best. Affirmative action is the nation's most ambitious attempt to remedy its long history of racial…

Sources used in this document:
An important aspect of the labor market disadvantage suffered by African-Americans is their high unemployment rate. Unemployment rates for African-Americans are twice as high as those are for whites. The problem is particularly bad for eighteen- to nineteen-year-old blacks, which suffer unemployment rates above 30%. In a study conducted by the Urban Institute of Chicago, researchers found that young white men were offered jobs 45% more often than the young black men were. This result reveals that some employers were not treating male minority job seekers equally with white males of similar qualifications. Additionally, whites received 52% more job offers than the Hispanics.

The inflation-corrected wages of white women have been on a downturn since the mid-1970s. However, white men have not lost their superior position in the labor market: a substantial gap remains between their wages and those of white women and black men and women. Modest reductions have been made in that gap since 1967. Black men's wages were 69% of white men's in 1967. By 1976 their wages had risen to 79% of white men's. Since then, they have been losing rather than gaining ground on white men. White women gained no ground on white men until the early 1980s; they have been gaining in the years since. In 1995 their wages were 73% of white men's, compared with 6l percent in 1967. Black women have made gains throughout the period, but recently their gains have not matched those of white women. In 1995, black women's wages were 63% of white men's. Presently, current discrimination in the labor market causes black men to earn 12 to 15% less than white men for the same position.

The disparity in black men's wages relative to white men's over the last twenty years indicate that whatever help blacks have received from affirmative action has been modest at best. Affirmative action is the nation's most ambitious attempt to remedy its long history of racial and sexual discrimination. Although considerable improvements have been made, further advances are clearly needed.
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Affirmative Action Is an Organization of Policies
Words: 925 Length: 3 Document Type: Essay

Affirmative Action is an organization of policies and designed procedures aimed at assisting in the elimination of discrimination against women and other minorities in the human society, together with redressing the possibilities of past discrimination. As required by the Affirmative Action Plan's requirements, Affirmative Action was signed by President Johnson in 1965. It supported and revised by different presidents in the world. The intention of Affirmative Action is to have

Affirmative Action Is an Initiative Based on
Words: 1100 Length: 4 Document Type: Essay

Affirmative action is an initiative based on a set of policies that are intended to eradicate both present and past prejudice against women and minority in areas of employment and businesses where they were historically marginalized. Theses discriminations can also be based on ones race, religion, color or nation of origin (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2009). Brief History of affirmative action Civil rights movements originally endorsed programs that would enable African-Americans acquire

Affirmative Action Should Race Be a Factor in Deciding College Admissions...
Words: 2310 Length: 8 Document Type: Term Paper

Affirmative Action - Should Race be a Factor in Deciding College Admissions? Should race be a deciding factor for college admissions? The debate is one that is hotly contested among students and administrators alike. Many feel that in a tight job market acquiring a college educational is an essential prerequisite for career advancement (Worsnop, 1996) thus competition for admission to many of the nation's best universities is increasing. In addition tuition expenses

Affirmative Action
Words: 4199 Length: 15 Document Type: Thesis

This is a particular problem at the nation's colleges and universities. This has become so much of an issue that law suits and verdicts have been handed down in some states. One of the most famous cases to date involved the University of Michigan's undergraduate and law school policies. These cases are Gratz v. Bollinger and Grutter v. Bollinger. In 1997, Jennifer Gratz, a white woman, sued the University of

Affirmative Action: Why We Need to Reform
Words: 3682 Length: 11 Document Type: Essay

Affirmative Action: Why We Need to Reform It It is widely believed that the American society is a "melting pot" where members of racial, ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities eventually mold into the mainstream, becoming full-fledged citizens of the country. The reality, however, is much more complicated. While it is true that America offers many opportunities to all its citizens, there is a history of discrimination against minority groups that affects

Affirmative Action at Its Most Objective Definition,
Words: 1455 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Affirmative Action At its most objective definition, affirmative action entails "positive steps taken to increase the representation of women and minorities in areas of employment, education, and business from which they have been historically excluded." Affirmative action acknowledges the presence of institutionalized and systematic forms of discrimination: which may not be apparent to members of the dominant or privileged culture. For example, white males will not even notice that no Blacks

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now