Can someone "on the left" please shed some light on how they reconcile the following three beliefs? 1. Jobs should be handed out on merit. 2. Protected cla

Can someone "on the left" please shed some light on how they reconcile the following three beliefs? 1. Jobs should be handed out on merit. 2. Protected class X has been educationally disadvantaged. 3. Representation of class X in the workplace must match their representation in the society. It would seem that one out of three has to be given up, and meritocracy is an obvious choice, as the article suggests.