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Please just entertain a hypothetical: If it turns out that the FAA was hiring much more slowly than it needed to be because it was unable to reach its DEI goals

Please just entertain a hypothetical: If it turns out that the FAA was hiring much more slowly than it needed to be because it was unable to reach its DEI goals, can we all agree that we should stop doing DEI for important things?

brookst 2y ago
Sure, if you’ll also entertain a non-hypothetical that DEI does not mean hiring quotas where you refuse to fill open spots, it means proactively reaching out to find talent in non-traditional areas (e.g. doing a job fair at an urban vocational school in addition to the usual ones at mostly-white colleges). And, if for some reason it turns out that the FAA was doing a terrible job of DEI and somehow was trying to meet quotas, can we agree that we should fix the implementation, not just throw up our hands and say “I guess these jobs are whites-only”?
- tredre3 2y ago
  > if you’ll also entertain a non-hypothetical that DEI does not mean hiring quotas where you refuse to fill open spots I'm sure this is true about the FAA, I have no reason to doubt you, but quotas are a very real part of DEI in other sectors and slots do stay open until they find a suitable quota-fitting candidate.
  - beej71 2y ago
    I don't doubt that some quotas exist somewhere. I just don't know where and have never encountered them in any of my jobs and they're probably illegal. Our DEI training at my current work is "always hire the most qualified person for the job". And that's what it was at my previous job, as well.
- brandonmenc 2y ago
  > DEI does not mean hiring quotas where you refuse to fill open spots, it means proactively reaching out to find talent in non-traditional areas I've worked at companies that do exactly this with quotas of a minimum number of underrepresented candidates who must be interviewed before filling the position, even if the positions all end up going to white or asian men. It can take a very long time to fill a position under those rules. I don't think this is a bad policy in principle, but an unintended consequence is often understaffing in the short to medium term.
duxup 2y ago
Couldn’t we just say a hypothetical of the opposite? If we’re entering any hypothetical it seems like we could say anything.

brookst 2y ago

Sure, if you’ll also entertain a non-hypothetical that DEI does not mean hiring quotas where you refuse to fill open spots, it means proactively reaching out to find talent in non-traditional areas (e.g. doing a job fair at an urban vocational school in addition to the usual ones at mostly-white colleges). And, if for some reason it turns out that the FAA was doing a terrible job of DEI and somehow was trying to meet quotas, can we agree that we should fix the implementation, not just throw up our hands and say “I guess these jobs are whites-only”?

tredre3 2y ago
> if you’ll also entertain a non-hypothetical that DEI does not mean hiring quotas where you refuse to fill open spots I'm sure this is true about the FAA, I have no reason to doubt you, but quotas are a very real part of DEI in other sectors and slots do stay open until they find a suitable quota-fitting candidate.
- beej71 2y ago
  I don't doubt that some quotas exist somewhere. I just don't know where and have never encountered them in any of my jobs and they're probably illegal. Our DEI training at my current work is "always hire the most qualified person for the job". And that's what it was at my previous job, as well.
brandonmenc 2y ago
> DEI does not mean hiring quotas where you refuse to fill open spots, it means proactively reaching out to find talent in non-traditional areas I've worked at companies that do exactly this with quotas of a minimum number of underrepresented candidates who must be interviewed before filling the position, even if the positions all end up going to white or asian men. It can take a very long time to fill a position under those rules. I don't think this is a bad policy in principle, but an unintended consequence is often understaffing in the short to medium term.

duxup 2y ago

Couldn’t we just say a hypothetical of the opposite? If we’re entering any hypothetical it seems like we could say anything.