PHIL 3310 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Pink-Collar Worker, Disparate Impact
22 May 2018
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Chapter 11
Study Guide 11-(Job Discrimination)
1. What is employment discrimination?
a. Job discrimination occurs when an employment decision in some way harms and
disadvantages an employee or job applicant, the decision is based on the person’s
membership in a certain group rather than on individual merit, and the decision
rests on prejudice, false stereotypes, or assumption that the group in question is in
some way inferior and thus does not deserve equal treatment.
2. Provide four examples of individual and institutional discrimination.
a. An example of individual discrimination is the executive at Rent-A-Center, the
nation’s largest rent-to-own furniture and home appliance company, purposely
disregarded job applications from women because he believed that they “should be
home taking care of their husbands and children.” Another example is if a Walmart
manager is influenced by his implicit assumption that male employees are career
oriented and have families to support, whereas females are just trying to make some
extra money, it would be individual discrimination. An example of institutional
discrimination is Abercrombie & Finch giving minorities less visible jobs
compared to Caucasians. Another example is the FBI routinely transferred Hispanic
agents around the country on temporary, low-level assignments where a knowledge
of Spanish was needed.
3. How does one determine the existence of discrimination?
a. Statistics indicate that women and minorities play an unequal role in the work world
and when endemic attitudes, practices, and policies are biased in ways that seem to
account for the skewed statistics, then there is good reason to believe that job
discrimination is a pervasive problem.
4. Consider the statistical evidence discussed in the text. Summarize the evidence presented
for discrimination against women and minorities.
a. The evidence that is presented for discrimination against women and minorities is
statistics about the percentage of the minorities holding white collar jobs compared
to whites. It also explains what pink collar occupations are. Pink collar occupations
are occupations that are meant to be held by women such as nurses, librarians,
secretaries, clerks, etc.
5. What is attitudinal evidence? How does one gather evidence of attitudinal discrimination?
a. Evidence of biased attitudes and sexist or racial assumptions also points to
significant job discrimination in the work place. As they try to fit into a work world
dominated by white men, women and minorities can be disadvantaged by
stereotypes, false preconceptions, and prejudiced attitudes. One gathers evidence
of attitudinal discrimination by taking surveys that are able to support the evidence.
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