Affirmative Action And Minority Employment

Affirmative action was first adopted as a public policy by the Johnson administration in the 1960s, which aimed at improving the status of minority members in employment, education, government contracting, etc. This thesis, using a framework of public policy evaluation, makes an assessment of the process of implementation of workplace affirmative action and its impact on minority employment. The process evaluation has found affirmative action to be a sustainable and effective policy, although there were wax and wane in the enforcement of workplace affirmative action under different administrations. The impact evaluation shows that the policy was effective in reducing institutional barriers to minority employment and increasing minority representation in the workplace as employers were forced to alter their traditional employment practices. Skilled minority workers benefited more from the policy than those with fewer skills in terms of career advancement. While there were costs incurred as a result of enforcing or complying with affirmative action, there was no sign of productivity losses caused by the hiring of minority members.