Equality and Diversity

[Biker Biggles]

Nice one dissuade.I might just do that too.
Trouble is theres a distinct lack of a sense of humour round my job these days as we have been "modernised" and "improved".

Ah, just picked myself up from laughing at all the 'quotas' and 'I don't know why I'm being asked to do this' -ness in this thread.

did anyone actully stop and think to find out what it's really all about?....

[Biker Biggles]

Its all about jobs for the boys and girls.
How else would incompetant managers be kept in post?

Originally Posted by CoolGirl

Ah, just picked myself up from laughing at all the 'quotas' and 'I don't know why I'm being asked to do this' -ness in this thread.

did anyone actully stop and think to find out what it's really all about?....

Yes, its about reducing the chances of getting offered an interview (let alone a job) if you are a straight, single, able bodied, white male!!!

By trying to reduce prejudice/track it, you are actually potentially inflicting it, just on another 'set'!! The whole thing is just plain wrong! Jobs/interviews should be offered as you are the best candidate - fullstop!!

Originally Posted by Shellywoozle

It becomes your life when you are a

Yeah, and look what it has done to your mental state!!

Originally Posted by Blue_SV650S

Yes, its about reducing the chances of getting offered an interview (let alone a job) if you are a straight, single, able bodied, white male!!!

By trying to reduce prejudice/track it, you are actually potentially inflicting it, just on another 'set'!! The whole thing is just plain wrong! Jobs/interviews should be offered as you are the best candidate - fullstop!!

So right IMO. Best to get something straight - being 'anti-discrimination' is NOT about making sure there are equal/some other proportion of each "group". Being "anti-discrimination" is about not discriminating AT ALL - i.e. your/the choices are NOT influenced by whatever it is you are "not discriminating" against.

Thus, asking these questions, as Blue points out and as I tried to say earlier, is actually discriminating.

...there is no such thing as positive discrimination.

Originally Posted by muffles

...there is no such thing as positive discrimination.

Quite right - it's actually illegal in this country.

Originally Posted by Blue_SV650S
its about reducing the chances of getting offered an interview (let alone a job) if you are a straight, single, able bodied, white male!!!

Is it? how did you work that out? If your monitoring form is separated, as it should be, from the application, then you've got nothing to worry about if you're up to the job. The monitoring is only used in aggregate to look at the proportion of people applying, being interviewed and being appointed. Why does this happen? To make sure the process doesn't disadvantage anyone.

So, please, stop whining about your demographic status until you've really been discriminated against and have evidence of such.
(sorry if there's too many long words in this for you)

Originally Posted by CoolGirl

Is it? how did you work that out? If your monitoring form is separated, as it should be, from the application, then you've got nothing to worry about if you're up to the job. The monitoring is only used in aggregate to look at the proportion of people applying, being interviewed and being appointed. Why does this happen? To make sure the process doesn't disadvantage anyone.

So if the forms are separated, how can any statistics about interviews, appointments etc be collated?

Originally Posted by Woz

So if the forms are separated, how can any statistics about interviews, appointments etc be collated?

easy - you have a ref number which the admin person then matches up with them afterwards (Mine have an 'office use only' box at the bottom and my PA puts an identifier in. I never see the forms, she does the adding up and tells me)

Originally Posted by CoolGirl

easy - you have a ref number which the admin person then matches up with them afterwards (Mine have an 'office use only' box at the bottom and my PA puts an identifier in. I never see the forms, she does the adding up and tells me)

Seems completely unnecessary then. Accomplishes nothing whatsoever.

As an example of so-called positive discrimination however, the current Mrs Woz used to work in management at the Probation Service. When recruiting for one position, there was nothing to separate two candidates and she was directed by senior management to appoint the candidate from the 'minority' background.

Personally I found that disgusting.

Originally Posted by Woz

Seems completely unnecessary then. Accomplishes nothing whatsoever..

Beg to differ. If I know that none of the disabled people that applied got through, I'd think I might have a problem with my process. If none applied in the first place, I'd wonder what was putting them off.

Originally Posted by Woz

As an example of so-called positive discrimination however, the current Mrs Woz used to work in management at the Probation Service. When recruiting for one position, there was nothing to separate two candidates and she was directed by senior management to appoint the candidate from the 'minority' background.

Personally I found that disgusting.

Agree. I'd have refused to do it. They should have applied further competence-related criteria.