ANTI-DEI policy ignores real inequity
Gov. Greg Abbott issued a memo last month to Texas public agencies and public higher education to stop considering diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, in hiring decisions and rely solely on the merits of the applicant.
He wrote that DEI hiring practices “push policies that expressly favor some demographic groups to the detriment of others…[and]…rather than increasing diversity in the workplace [have] the opposite effect and…proactively encourage discrimination in the workplace.”
Abbott said adding factors other than merit in hiring practices is illegal and violates state and federal law.
We should all desire to be judged and judge others solely on the merits of our skills and talent, but reality does not bear this out. The Bureau of Labor statistics demonstrates that nationally, unemployment rates for Black men and women are approximately double those for white men and women since 1972, according to the Brookings Institution.
In Texas, the last two quarters in 2022 confirm this statistic, with white unemployment at 3.1 percent and Black unemployment at 6.2 percent. Unemployment rates alone do
not tell the whole story, but align those statistics with educational, home ownership and wealth growth, and it becomes blatantly clear that minorities in Texas and the nation are not given the opportunity to start from the same place as their counterparts.
DEI human resources policies attempt to create a workplace environment in which people from different backgrounds, ethnicities, and experiences are valued and treated equally, while accounting for their varying levels of access to the opportunities cherished in
the American dream.
A policy prescription like the one issued by Abbott ignores the reality of many historically discriminated groups and the intergenerational effects of discrimination that hindered those groups from equal access to the same economic opportunities. Even when all individuals gain equal access, research demonstrates that individuals from historically discriminated groups still experience discrimination and barriers to employment.
Public organizations that do not prioritize DEI may miss
out on the benefits that come from a diverse and inclusive workplace, such as increased innovation and a return on investment of the public’s dollar. At the very worst, maintaining a merit-only policy in hiring will continue to sustain the enormous economic disparities in Texas.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to DEI. Additionally, implementing DEI policies often require significant resources, including time, money and personnel. This can be especially challenging for resource strapped public organizations in an era where government spending is seen as too high already. Moreover, the empirical research on the implementation of DEI demonstrates that such policies do not always have the intended effects and can be a significant challenge for organizations, especially when organizations adopt them as “window dressing” or to only give an appearance of being a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment.
Striving for equality is a noble cause. Equality refers to treating everyone the same, regardless of their differences. Equity, on the other hand, ensures that people receive the resources they need to meet their basic needs, by recognizing that not everyone starts from the same position.
Government hiring practices should be informed by both the benefits and challenges of DEI policies and take a thoughtful and strategic approach to implementing them. We should never adopt a policy that pits one cherished American value against another. For while we strive to an ideal of a meritocracy, we must recognize the reality that not all of our fellow Americans were or are given the same chance to achieve or demonstrate that merit.