Writing Assignment (15%) - Affirmative Action You will write a Research Paper about the topic listed below. You may complete this research paper In pairs, or Individually. Students that complete in pairs will receive the same mark. You must use 4 sources - 2 of them must be peer-reviewed academic journals. If you are unsure of what an academic journal is, please see me or the campus librarian. Objective: To critically assess the appropriateness of affirmative action hiring policies in business. Assessment will be done after extensive research using academic sources. You will be evaluated based on the analytic depth of your assessment and on the writing structure and style of your submission. Please see rubric for more detail. Background: Employee diversity is an objective for many organizations in both the private and public sector. Although diversity is generally accepted as a desired state, there is significant controversy and disagreement about how a diverse workplace can be achieved. In November, 2015, Justin Trudeau formed Canada's first gender balanced cabinet (fulfilling his campaign promise). He used affirmative action in order to achieve this type of diversity, which is very controversial. This means that in choosing cabinet members, 50% of members had to be male and 50% of cabinet members had to be female. You must watch the following video in order to understand the controversy surrounding Trudeau's decision: -The National's Sunday Talk: Trudeau's Gender Balanced Cabinet (search on Youtube) As demonstrated by the video, this type of affirmative action is controversial. On the one hand, it is effective (because diversity is forced) but on the other hand, it has many criticisms (for example: reverse discrimination and the risk associated with not hiring candidates based on merit). More and more companies are using this type of hiring process in the private sector. In this writing assignment, you will explore the appropriateness of this type of policy In the business world. Your writing assignment will have 2 components: 1. Research (must use 4 sources, 2 must be academic sources). Expected length: 1000 words Write a research paper that takes a specific position on the topic of using affirmative action to achieve a diverse work environment in business. Suggested (but not mandatory) areas you may explore are: -Is affirmative action an appropriate tool in achieving diversity in business? -Why or why not could/should this strategy be used in the business world? Is gender the most appropriate target group for affirmative action? Note the speaker in the CBC video that suggests that perhaps government should be balanced on class or ethnicity, rather than on gender. Notes