CBC News
Rodney Clifton, professor emeritus of education at the University of Manitoba, is worried the faculty's new affirmative action plan will take away spots from students more qualified to be teachers.
Read the story here.
Showing posts with label quotas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label quotas. Show all posts
Monday, February 22, 2016
Education experts spar over affirmative action at University of Manitoba
Faculty of education to set aside 45% of spots for students from 'diversity categories'
CBC News
CBC News
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
A subject that won’t vanish
livemint.com (India)
Summary Judgement Prashant Agrawal
Posted: Tue, Nov 29 2011. 10:42 PM IST
India’s private sector needs to watch only one Bollywood movie this year: Aarakshan. Unlike most big budget movies, this one tackles a sensitive subject—quotas—in educational institutions. Though the film is focused squarely on education, the issue of affirmative action not only haunts educational institutions, but radiates to corporate life as well.
It’s ironic, but the world’s two greatest and largest democracies face similar issues in helping long suppressed minorities uplift their status. To help correct the injustice, government programmes in both countries were developed to help the underprivileged.
Full Story: http://www.livemint.com/2011/11/29224222/A-subject-that-won8217t-van.html?h=B
Summary Judgement Prashant Agrawal
Posted: Tue, Nov 29 2011. 10:42 PM IST
India’s private sector needs to watch only one Bollywood movie this year: Aarakshan. Unlike most big budget movies, this one tackles a sensitive subject—quotas—in educational institutions. Though the film is focused squarely on education, the issue of affirmative action not only haunts educational institutions, but radiates to corporate life as well.
It’s ironic, but the world’s two greatest and largest democracies face similar issues in helping long suppressed minorities uplift their status. To help correct the injustice, government programmes in both countries were developed to help the underprivileged.
Full Story: http://www.livemint.com/2011/11/29224222/A-subject-that-won8217t-van.html?h=B
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
'Sweden made me re-think affirmative action'
The Local (Sweden)
Published: 23 Nov 11 11:20 CET
Although Sweden’s emphasis on gender can at times seem a bit much to a foreigner, the battle to change perceptions of how a gender equal society can look, has made it a model to follow, Ruben Brunsveld observes.
Ban mums' bare boobs: young Swedes (26 Oct 11)
Half of young Swedish mums want to be housewives: study (25 Oct 11)
Swedish men soon in the majority (25 Sep 11)Reacting to my latest contribution on The Local, some readers questioned if I wanted to live in Sweden or whether it would not be better to move (back) to another country. One commentator even “marvel(ed) at Mr. Brunsveld's almost neverending knitpicking of Sweden's endless flow of 'faults and inadequacies'’. So let me begin with stating the obvious: Sweden is a marvelous country in which to live! So many important core values are anchored in society in a way that few other countries have managed. Transparency, equality, the rule of law, and many other human rights values are not only incorporated in the constitution but also woven deeply into the fabric of society. And yes, sometimes I wonder if it doesn’t go too far.
Full Story: http://www.thelocal.se/37516/20111123/#
Published: 23 Nov 11 11:20 CET
Although Sweden’s emphasis on gender can at times seem a bit much to a foreigner, the battle to change perceptions of how a gender equal society can look, has made it a model to follow, Ruben Brunsveld observes.
Ban mums' bare boobs: young Swedes (26 Oct 11)
Half of young Swedish mums want to be housewives: study (25 Oct 11)
Swedish men soon in the majority (25 Sep 11)Reacting to my latest contribution on The Local, some readers questioned if I wanted to live in Sweden or whether it would not be better to move (back) to another country. One commentator even “marvel(ed) at Mr. Brunsveld's almost neverending knitpicking of Sweden's endless flow of 'faults and inadequacies'’. So let me begin with stating the obvious: Sweden is a marvelous country in which to live! So many important core values are anchored in society in a way that few other countries have managed. Transparency, equality, the rule of law, and many other human rights values are not only incorporated in the constitution but also woven deeply into the fabric of society. And yes, sometimes I wonder if it doesn’t go too far.
Full Story: http://www.thelocal.se/37516/20111123/#
Thursday, January 21, 2010
France to push women into the boardroom
TimesOnline
January 21, 2010
The French version of the glass ceiling has just been cracked open by parliamentary vote. With the backing of President Sarkozy's administration, the National Assembly last night passed a bill that aims to force big companies to appoint women to 40 percent of their seats on the board.
The quota is likely to reach the statue books, with amendments, later this year, making France the biggest state so far to use the law to break the boys only culture of the boardroom. Norway introduced a 40 percent rule in 2002 when women accounted for only 6 per cent of board seats there. Spain has also just passed a similar law.
The measure will mean an upheaval because the boards of France's top companies remain male bastions, along with those of southern Europe (see chart below). Women occupy just 10.5 percent of board seats in the 650 publicly quoted companies to which the new law will apply. Corporations will have six years to reach the 40 percent mark. After that, all board appointments will be voided if they do not maintain at least a 60-40 share between men and women.
Full Story: http://timescorrespondents.typepad.com/charles_bremner/2010/01/france-pushes-women-into-the-boardroom-.html
January 21, 2010
The French version of the glass ceiling has just been cracked open by parliamentary vote. With the backing of President Sarkozy's administration, the National Assembly last night passed a bill that aims to force big companies to appoint women to 40 percent of their seats on the board.
The quota is likely to reach the statue books, with amendments, later this year, making France the biggest state so far to use the law to break the boys only culture of the boardroom. Norway introduced a 40 percent rule in 2002 when women accounted for only 6 per cent of board seats there. Spain has also just passed a similar law.
The measure will mean an upheaval because the boards of France's top companies remain male bastions, along with those of southern Europe (see chart below). Women occupy just 10.5 percent of board seats in the 650 publicly quoted companies to which the new law will apply. Corporations will have six years to reach the 40 percent mark. After that, all board appointments will be voided if they do not maintain at least a 60-40 share between men and women.
Full Story: http://timescorrespondents.typepad.com/charles_bremner/2010/01/france-pushes-women-into-the-boardroom-.html
Monday, November 2, 2009
University race quotas row in Brazil
BBC News
Sunday, 1 November 2009
By Gary Duffy, BBC News, Rio de Janeiro
There are more people of African descent in Brazil than in any country outside the African continent itself, but the higher you go in Brazilian society the less evidence there appears to be of that reality.
Critics say part of the blame lies with a system which has often failed to provide equality of access to third-level education, though recent years have seen some improvements.
To try to address the problem, many Brazilian universities have adopted affirmative action policies or quotas to try to boost the number of black and mixed race students, or more generally those from poor backgrounds.
Gisele says the quotas system has given her a head-start
It is a controversial approach which some argue is necessary to end decades of inequality, while others fear it threatens to introduce racial tension in a society which has been largely free of such problems.
Gisele Alves lives in a poor neighbourhood in Nova Iguacu on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, and says she doubts she would have got to college without a helping hand from the state.
She is studying at the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), which was one of the first to adopt quotas.
"I thought I was going to finish school, find work in a little shop, get married and pregnant and that would be it. I didn't expect much more than that," she says.
"But with the system of quotas I started to think I could go to university. My parents couldn't pay privately - if I wanted to study it had to be at a public university."
Giselle got her place in part due to Rio's controversial quotas system which sets aside 20% of public university places for poor black and indigenous students, and the same number for students educated in the much criticised public school system.
Full Story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8285350.stm
Sunday, 1 November 2009
By Gary Duffy, BBC News, Rio de Janeiro
There are more people of African descent in Brazil than in any country outside the African continent itself, but the higher you go in Brazilian society the less evidence there appears to be of that reality.
Critics say part of the blame lies with a system which has often failed to provide equality of access to third-level education, though recent years have seen some improvements.
To try to address the problem, many Brazilian universities have adopted affirmative action policies or quotas to try to boost the number of black and mixed race students, or more generally those from poor backgrounds.
Gisele says the quotas system has given her a head-start
It is a controversial approach which some argue is necessary to end decades of inequality, while others fear it threatens to introduce racial tension in a society which has been largely free of such problems.
Gisele Alves lives in a poor neighbourhood in Nova Iguacu on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro, and says she doubts she would have got to college without a helping hand from the state.
She is studying at the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), which was one of the first to adopt quotas.
"I thought I was going to finish school, find work in a little shop, get married and pregnant and that would be it. I didn't expect much more than that," she says.
"But with the system of quotas I started to think I could go to university. My parents couldn't pay privately - if I wanted to study it had to be at a public university."
Giselle got her place in part due to Rio's controversial quotas system which sets aside 20% of public university places for poor black and indigenous students, and the same number for students educated in the much criticised public school system.
Full Story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8285350.stm
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Affirmative Action, Brazilian-Style
The Chronicle of Higher Education
October 11, 2009
By Marion Lloyd
Six years after Brazilian universities began embracing affirmative action, higher education in Brazil is no longer the domain of a mostly white elite.
Since 2003 more than 1,300 institutions of higher education have adopted quotas for Afro-Brazilians and graduates of public high schools. The government has also created 10 public universities and dozens of new campuses in poor areas in an effort to expand access to higher education for the underprivileged.
But the debate over the quota system—racial quotas in particular—continues to inflame passions in a country that has long considered itself a racial democracy.
Brazil was the last country in the Western Hemisphere to abolish slavery, in 1888. Today the descendants of slaves officially make up nearly half of the country's 190 million people, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, the government census bureau. Proponents of quotas for Afro-Brazilians argue that only Nigeria has a larger black population. But centuries of racial intermixing, which was initially encouraged by Portuguese colonizers seeking to whiten the population, have made it famously hard to classify Brazilians by race.
Take the case of Alan and Alex Texeira, identical male twins who applied for admission to the federal University of Brasilia in 2007 under the racial quotas. After analyzing photos of the brothers—a required step for accessing the university's quota system—separate "race boards" determined that one was black and one was white.
Opponents of the racial quotas argue that poverty, not race, is the main obstacle to getting a university education in Brazil. The country's more than 130 public universities are free, and competition at most of them, particularly the 55 federal universities, is brutal. Private universities enroll about 80 percent of the 4.5 million students in the higher-education system. But in a nation where per capita income is just $7,350 a year, and the distribution of wealth is among the world's most unequal, most families cannot afford to send their children to private universities.
Full Story: http://chronicle.com/article/Affirmative-Action/48734/
October 11, 2009
By Marion Lloyd
Six years after Brazilian universities began embracing affirmative action, higher education in Brazil is no longer the domain of a mostly white elite.
Since 2003 more than 1,300 institutions of higher education have adopted quotas for Afro-Brazilians and graduates of public high schools. The government has also created 10 public universities and dozens of new campuses in poor areas in an effort to expand access to higher education for the underprivileged.
But the debate over the quota system—racial quotas in particular—continues to inflame passions in a country that has long considered itself a racial democracy.
Brazil was the last country in the Western Hemisphere to abolish slavery, in 1888. Today the descendants of slaves officially make up nearly half of the country's 190 million people, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, the government census bureau. Proponents of quotas for Afro-Brazilians argue that only Nigeria has a larger black population. But centuries of racial intermixing, which was initially encouraged by Portuguese colonizers seeking to whiten the population, have made it famously hard to classify Brazilians by race.
Take the case of Alan and Alex Texeira, identical male twins who applied for admission to the federal University of Brasilia in 2007 under the racial quotas. After analyzing photos of the brothers—a required step for accessing the university's quota system—separate "race boards" determined that one was black and one was white.
Opponents of the racial quotas argue that poverty, not race, is the main obstacle to getting a university education in Brazil. The country's more than 130 public universities are free, and competition at most of them, particularly the 55 federal universities, is brutal. Private universities enroll about 80 percent of the 4.5 million students in the higher-education system. But in a nation where per capita income is just $7,350 a year, and the distribution of wealth is among the world's most unequal, most families cannot afford to send their children to private universities.
Full Story: http://chronicle.com/article/Affirmative-Action/48734/
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Committee Calls for Affirmative Action in Colombia Higher Education
Journal of Blacks in Higher Education
Weekly Bulletin
September 17, 2009
Slavery was abolished in the South American nation of Colombia in 1851. Today official figures show that Afro-Colombians make up 11 percent of the total population. But the actual percentage of the population that is black may be as high as 26 percent, according to some demographic experts...
An investigative committee set up by the Colombian government has found that black Colombians face significant “structural discrimination.” Life expectancy, education levels, and income are lower for Afro-Colombians than for those of other ethnic groups in the country.
The committee recommended that quotas be established so that blacks are guaranteed places at Colombia universities, in the armed forces, and in government jobs. The committee also urged that the government institute incentives for private firms to hire black managers and for political parties to field black candidates.
Full Story: http://www.jbhe.com/latest/news/9-17-09/colombia.html
Weekly Bulletin
September 17, 2009
Slavery was abolished in the South American nation of Colombia in 1851. Today official figures show that Afro-Colombians make up 11 percent of the total population. But the actual percentage of the population that is black may be as high as 26 percent, according to some demographic experts...
An investigative committee set up by the Colombian government has found that black Colombians face significant “structural discrimination.” Life expectancy, education levels, and income are lower for Afro-Colombians than for those of other ethnic groups in the country.
The committee recommended that quotas be established so that blacks are guaranteed places at Colombia universities, in the armed forces, and in government jobs. The committee also urged that the government institute incentives for private firms to hire black managers and for political parties to field black candidates.
Full Story: http://www.jbhe.com/latest/news/9-17-09/colombia.html
Sunday, July 19, 2009
India Would Impose Caste Affirmative Action on Foreign Universities
Inside Higher Ed
Quick Takes
July 17, 2009
India, which has historically discouraged colleges from outside the country from setting up operations there, has been moving to change that policy and invite institutions in. But government officials are now saying that such operations would have to abide by strict quotas that specify the number of places for members of disadvantaged castes, The Times of India reported. Such requirements have been much debated in India, and have been questioned by leaders of the top universities, but the system is politically popular. The Times quoted a key official saying: ‘‘All institutions must be inclusive. If any institution has to set up in India then it has to ensure a place for backward castes. There is no compromise on it."
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/07/17/qt#203614
Quick Takes
July 17, 2009
India, which has historically discouraged colleges from outside the country from setting up operations there, has been moving to change that policy and invite institutions in. But government officials are now saying that such operations would have to abide by strict quotas that specify the number of places for members of disadvantaged castes, The Times of India reported. Such requirements have been much debated in India, and have been questioned by leaders of the top universities, but the system is politically popular. The Times quoted a key official saying: ‘‘All institutions must be inclusive. If any institution has to set up in India then it has to ensure a place for backward castes. There is no compromise on it."
http://www.insidehighered.com/news/2009/07/17/qt#203614
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
BRAZIL: University Racial Quotas Bogged Down in Congress
IPS
By Fabiana Frayssinet
RIO DE JANEIRO, Apr 28 (IPS) - Claudio Fernández is able to study law thanks to affirmative action quotas at the Rio de Janeiro State University (UERJ). But a draft law to expand race quotas to all public institutions of higher education is stalled in the Senate."The quotas helped me overcome a situation in which the son of a domestic employee with five children – my case – cannot even imagine making it to a public university, not to mention a career in law," Fernández told IPS. The UERJ law student is poor, just like 67 percent of blacks in Brazil. Public primary and secondary schools in Brazil do not tend to provide a solid educational foundation for continuing on to tertiary level studies. In addition, private courses for the university entrance exam are costly. Most of the students who make it into the country’s prestigious public universities come from middle and upper socioeconomic strata and studied at private schools. Brazil’s tuition-free federal universities provide the best higher education in the country. The draft law that would reserve quotas for black and indigenous students in public universities and vocational-technical institutes, introduced by the leftwing government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is aimed at overcoming these imbalances, which are later reflected in the labour market. The initiative would reserve 50 percent of spots in the federal university system for students from public schools, half of whom must come from families with a maximum income of 1.5 minimum monthly salaries – equivalent to 313 dollars. The racial quotas, meanwhile, would be set according to the proportion of blacks and indigenous people in any given state, based on census information from the Brazilian Institute of Statistics. For example, in a state like BahÃa in the northeast, where a majority of the population is black, the proportion would be higher, while it would be lower in the southern state of Santa Catarina. But the draft law, approved by the Chamber of Deputies on Nov. 20 - National Black Awareness Day – is bogged down in the Senate constitution and justice committee. In a telephone interview from the capital Brasilia, where a protest was held last week outside the Senate to demand passage of the law, Daniel Cara, coordinator of the National Campaign for the Right to Education, told IPS that "the approval process has been slow, given the importance of this draft law."
Full Story: http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=46649
By Fabiana Frayssinet
RIO DE JANEIRO, Apr 28 (IPS) - Claudio Fernández is able to study law thanks to affirmative action quotas at the Rio de Janeiro State University (UERJ). But a draft law to expand race quotas to all public institutions of higher education is stalled in the Senate."The quotas helped me overcome a situation in which the son of a domestic employee with five children – my case – cannot even imagine making it to a public university, not to mention a career in law," Fernández told IPS. The UERJ law student is poor, just like 67 percent of blacks in Brazil. Public primary and secondary schools in Brazil do not tend to provide a solid educational foundation for continuing on to tertiary level studies. In addition, private courses for the university entrance exam are costly. Most of the students who make it into the country’s prestigious public universities come from middle and upper socioeconomic strata and studied at private schools. Brazil’s tuition-free federal universities provide the best higher education in the country. The draft law that would reserve quotas for black and indigenous students in public universities and vocational-technical institutes, introduced by the leftwing government of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is aimed at overcoming these imbalances, which are later reflected in the labour market. The initiative would reserve 50 percent of spots in the federal university system for students from public schools, half of whom must come from families with a maximum income of 1.5 minimum monthly salaries – equivalent to 313 dollars. The racial quotas, meanwhile, would be set according to the proportion of blacks and indigenous people in any given state, based on census information from the Brazilian Institute of Statistics. For example, in a state like BahÃa in the northeast, where a majority of the population is black, the proportion would be higher, while it would be lower in the southern state of Santa Catarina. But the draft law, approved by the Chamber of Deputies on Nov. 20 - National Black Awareness Day – is bogged down in the Senate constitution and justice committee. In a telephone interview from the capital Brasilia, where a protest was held last week outside the Senate to demand passage of the law, Daniel Cara, coordinator of the National Campaign for the Right to Education, told IPS that "the approval process has been slow, given the importance of this draft law."
Full Story: http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=46649
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Swedish district court rules against 'affirmative action'
Life News
Swedish district court rules against 'affirmative action'
By DPAApr 9, 2009, 14:32 GMT
Stockholm - A Swedish district court has criticized the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences for discriminating against women in its selection process for applicants to veterinary studies.
The district court in the university city of Uppsala, north-west of Stockholm, ruled that 44 women were discriminated against by being denied places in veterinary school even though they had the same grades as the male applicants.
The district court said the quota used in 2006 and 2007 to increase the number of male veterinary students had discriminated against women who applied from adult education colleges.
'We have obtained redress,' Sofia Lindblad, one of the plaintiffs, told Swedish radio after the ruling. ...
More than 85 per cent of applicants were women, said lawyer Gunnar Strommer from the Centre for Justice, who handled the group action case. Read more: Swedish district court rules against 'affirmative action' - Monsters and Critics - http://www.monstersandcritics.com/lifestyle/life/news/article_1470041.php/Swedish_district_court_rules_against_affirmative_action#ixzz0CDkGirQf
Full Story: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/lifestyle/life/news/article_1470041.php/Swedish_district_court_rules_against_affirmative_action
Swedish district court rules against 'affirmative action'
By DPAApr 9, 2009, 14:32 GMT
Stockholm - A Swedish district court has criticized the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences for discriminating against women in its selection process for applicants to veterinary studies.
The district court in the university city of Uppsala, north-west of Stockholm, ruled that 44 women were discriminated against by being denied places in veterinary school even though they had the same grades as the male applicants.
The district court said the quota used in 2006 and 2007 to increase the number of male veterinary students had discriminated against women who applied from adult education colleges.
'We have obtained redress,' Sofia Lindblad, one of the plaintiffs, told Swedish radio after the ruling. ...
More than 85 per cent of applicants were women, said lawyer Gunnar Strommer from the Centre for Justice, who handled the group action case. Read more: Swedish district court rules against 'affirmative action' - Monsters and Critics - http://www.monstersandcritics.com/lifestyle/life/news/article_1470041.php/Swedish_district_court_rules_against_affirmative_action#ixzz0CDkGirQf
Full Story: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/lifestyle/life/news/article_1470041.php/Swedish_district_court_rules_against_affirmative_action
Monday, June 30, 2008
HRD orders faculty quota, IIT directors livid
The Times of India
28 Jun 2008, 0032 hrs IST, Hemali Chhapia,TNN
MUMBAI: Buoyed by its success in pushing through a quota for OBC students in higher education, the government has now ordered IITs to introduce - with "immediate effect" - quotas in the teaching faculty for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and OBCs. IIT directors, not surprisingly, were livid with the decision, though none of the four TOI spoke to were willing to go on record. The high quality of IIT faculty has built the institution into a globally respected brand. Said an IIT-Delhi professor: "It is hard to imagine that even teachers will now use the caste flag to get in." The government diktat dated June 9, which has been sent to all the IITs, lays down 15% quota for SC, 7.5% for ST and 27% quota for OBCs in teaching positions. IITs currently have reservations for backward category candidates for administrative posts - from attendants to the level of deputy registrar. However, there is no reservation for faculty members in these premier technological institutes. The order signed by Seema Raj, director of technical education in the HRD ministry, read, "I am directed to say that the matter relating to reservation of SC, ST, OBC categories in recruitment to teaching (faculty) posts in the IITs was considered in the second meeting of the SCIC (Standing Committee of IIT Council) held on 11/2/2008. The recommendations made by the SCIC have been accepted by the chairman of (the) IIT Council. Accordingly, it has been decided to implement reservation for SC, ST, OBC, in recruitment to teaching (faculty) posts in IITs with immediate effect." For subjects in science and technology, posts will be reserved for lecturers and assistant professors. In areas like management, social sciences and humanities, reservations will be applicable up to the professor level. The ministry allows IITs to dereserve the posts after a year, if they do not get filled "despite all efforts". Insiders feel that merit, on which brand IIT rests, would be shaken by the decision of the government. The order specifies that in departments dealing with science and technology subjects, "reservation shall be applied to the extent possible at the school or broad branch of engineering, at least, if not at the individual department level." The IIT directors TOI contacted, who were yet to convey the order to their faculty members, said they are shocked by the decision. "Some of the finest people have given up top positions and fat cheques that were offered to them in other parts of the world to come and teach in the IITs, despite the low pay scale that the government offers. With reservation in faculty positions, I see a day, not far from now, when the IITs will crumble," said one director. Another director said that there had been no bias against hiring backward category candidates to teaching positions if they were found meritorious. "Till now, if a backward category candidate was found on par with another candidate, the former was given preference, but reservation will change the atmosphere on campus," said the director. [To see the entire article, go to: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-3173620,prtpage-1.cms ]
28 Jun 2008, 0032 hrs IST, Hemali Chhapia,TNN
MUMBAI: Buoyed by its success in pushing through a quota for OBC students in higher education, the government has now ordered IITs to introduce - with "immediate effect" - quotas in the teaching faculty for scheduled castes, scheduled tribes and OBCs. IIT directors, not surprisingly, were livid with the decision, though none of the four TOI spoke to were willing to go on record. The high quality of IIT faculty has built the institution into a globally respected brand. Said an IIT-Delhi professor: "It is hard to imagine that even teachers will now use the caste flag to get in." The government diktat dated June 9, which has been sent to all the IITs, lays down 15% quota for SC, 7.5% for ST and 27% quota for OBCs in teaching positions. IITs currently have reservations for backward category candidates for administrative posts - from attendants to the level of deputy registrar. However, there is no reservation for faculty members in these premier technological institutes. The order signed by Seema Raj, director of technical education in the HRD ministry, read, "I am directed to say that the matter relating to reservation of SC, ST, OBC categories in recruitment to teaching (faculty) posts in the IITs was considered in the second meeting of the SCIC (Standing Committee of IIT Council) held on 11/2/2008. The recommendations made by the SCIC have been accepted by the chairman of (the) IIT Council. Accordingly, it has been decided to implement reservation for SC, ST, OBC, in recruitment to teaching (faculty) posts in IITs with immediate effect." For subjects in science and technology, posts will be reserved for lecturers and assistant professors. In areas like management, social sciences and humanities, reservations will be applicable up to the professor level. The ministry allows IITs to dereserve the posts after a year, if they do not get filled "despite all efforts". Insiders feel that merit, on which brand IIT rests, would be shaken by the decision of the government. The order specifies that in departments dealing with science and technology subjects, "reservation shall be applied to the extent possible at the school or broad branch of engineering, at least, if not at the individual department level." The IIT directors TOI contacted, who were yet to convey the order to their faculty members, said they are shocked by the decision. "Some of the finest people have given up top positions and fat cheques that were offered to them in other parts of the world to come and teach in the IITs, despite the low pay scale that the government offers. With reservation in faculty positions, I see a day, not far from now, when the IITs will crumble," said one director. Another director said that there had been no bias against hiring backward category candidates to teaching positions if they were found meritorious. "Till now, if a backward category candidate was found on par with another candidate, the former was given preference, but reservation will change the atmosphere on campus," said the director. [To see the entire article, go to: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-3173620,prtpage-1.cms ]
Thursday, April 10, 2008
(India) Apex court upholds 27 pc quota to OBCs
The Hindu News Update Service
Thursday, April 10, 2008 : 1410 Hrs
New Delhi (PTI): In a major boost to reservation, the Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Constitution amendment law providing for 27 per cent quota for OBCs [Otherwise Backwards Classes ] in IITs, IIMs and other Central educational institutions but excluded the creamy layer from the benefit.
A five-judge Constitution bench by a unanimous verdict cleared the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, 2006 providing for the quota.
The bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan excluded the creamy layer among the OBCs from the quota benefit.
The court held that the Act does not violate the basic structure of the Constitution.
The verdict came on a bunch of petitions by anti-quota activists challenging the Act. They vehemently opposed government's move saying caste cannot be the starting point for identifying backward classes.
The inclusion of creamy layer in the reservation policy was also questioned by the anti-quota petitioners.
With this judgement, the interim order of March 29, 2007 staying the implementation of the Act has been lifted.
In effect, the reservation policy can be put in place for the 2008-09 academic session.
The Court held that the Constitution (93rd Amendment) Act, under which the Government came out with the law providing 27 per cent quota in Centrally-aided institutions, was not violative of the basic structure of the Constitution.
All the judges favoured periodic revision on the implementation of the 27 per cent quota.
The Court ruled that the delegation of power to the Centre to determine OBCs was valid.
The parameter applied for identifying the creamy layer among the OBCs for jobs as per the office memorandum of September 8, 1993, will be applicable, the court said.
It also held as valid the exclusion of minority institutions from the ambit of quota under the Act.
Besides the Chief Justice, the Bench comprised Justices Arijit Pasayat, C K Thakker, R V Raveendran and Dalveer Bhandari. [To read the entire article, go to: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/000200804101231.htm ]
Thursday, April 10, 2008 : 1410 Hrs
New Delhi (PTI): In a major boost to reservation, the Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the Constitution amendment law providing for 27 per cent quota for OBCs [Otherwise Backwards Classes ] in IITs, IIMs and other Central educational institutions but excluded the creamy layer from the benefit.
A five-judge Constitution bench by a unanimous verdict cleared the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, 2006 providing for the quota.
The bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan excluded the creamy layer among the OBCs from the quota benefit.
The court held that the Act does not violate the basic structure of the Constitution.
The verdict came on a bunch of petitions by anti-quota activists challenging the Act. They vehemently opposed government's move saying caste cannot be the starting point for identifying backward classes.
The inclusion of creamy layer in the reservation policy was also questioned by the anti-quota petitioners.
With this judgement, the interim order of March 29, 2007 staying the implementation of the Act has been lifted.
In effect, the reservation policy can be put in place for the 2008-09 academic session.
The Court held that the Constitution (93rd Amendment) Act, under which the Government came out with the law providing 27 per cent quota in Centrally-aided institutions, was not violative of the basic structure of the Constitution.
All the judges favoured periodic revision on the implementation of the 27 per cent quota.
The Court ruled that the delegation of power to the Centre to determine OBCs was valid.
The parameter applied for identifying the creamy layer among the OBCs for jobs as per the office memorandum of September 8, 1993, will be applicable, the court said.
It also held as valid the exclusion of minority institutions from the ambit of quota under the Act.
Besides the Chief Justice, the Bench comprised Justices Arijit Pasayat, C K Thakker, R V Raveendran and Dalveer Bhandari. [To read the entire article, go to: http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/000200804101231.htm ]
Friday, February 8, 2008
India state starts business quotas for low castes
International Herald Tribune
By Sharat PradhanReuters
Friday, February 8, 2008
LUCKNOW, India: The head of India's most populous state, the so-called "queen of the untouchables", is tentatively extending lower-caste quotas into the private sector, a move that may have major political and economic repercussions.
India's lower castes and indigenous tribes already claim about half of government and public sector jobs, a scheme of affirmative action aimed at redressing the imbalance of Hinduism's ancient caste system.
But Mayawati, Uttar Pradesh chief minister and champion of Dalits or "untouchables," is expanding this into any private projects undertaken with the state, a booming sector as India spends billions of dollars on infrastructure such as highways.
Most leading businesses have shunned the idea of quotas, worried it will worsen their competitiveness in a global market.
Mayawati's government issued a circular this week to ensure departments implemented the quota system and took out full-page advertisements in prominent daily newspapers, with the title "New Positive Reservation Initiatives".
"Because of the anti-reservation mentality of the ruling classes the full benefits of reservation is not reaching the people," the advert said.
It is the first prominent policy in India to include private business into the quota system, analysts say, and highlights the role caste politics will play in 2009 general elections.
"There is increasingly a competitive race politically over who is doing what with reservations," said T.K. Bhaumik, chief economist of Reliance Industries Ltd, India's largest business conglomerate. "There are elections ahead."
Under the scheme, quotas will be introduced in public-private partnership enterprises, as well as in private companies doing outsourced state government work.
[To read the entire article, go to: http://www.iht.com/articles/reuters/2008/02/08/asia/OUKWD-UK-INDIA-MAYAWATI-QUOTA.php]
By Sharat PradhanReuters
Friday, February 8, 2008
LUCKNOW, India: The head of India's most populous state, the so-called "queen of the untouchables", is tentatively extending lower-caste quotas into the private sector, a move that may have major political and economic repercussions.
India's lower castes and indigenous tribes already claim about half of government and public sector jobs, a scheme of affirmative action aimed at redressing the imbalance of Hinduism's ancient caste system.
But Mayawati, Uttar Pradesh chief minister and champion of Dalits or "untouchables," is expanding this into any private projects undertaken with the state, a booming sector as India spends billions of dollars on infrastructure such as highways.
Most leading businesses have shunned the idea of quotas, worried it will worsen their competitiveness in a global market.
Mayawati's government issued a circular this week to ensure departments implemented the quota system and took out full-page advertisements in prominent daily newspapers, with the title "New Positive Reservation Initiatives".
"Because of the anti-reservation mentality of the ruling classes the full benefits of reservation is not reaching the people," the advert said.
It is the first prominent policy in India to include private business into the quota system, analysts say, and highlights the role caste politics will play in 2009 general elections.
"There is increasingly a competitive race politically over who is doing what with reservations," said T.K. Bhaumik, chief economist of Reliance Industries Ltd, India's largest business conglomerate. "There are elections ahead."
Under the scheme, quotas will be introduced in public-private partnership enterprises, as well as in private companies doing outsourced state government work.
[To read the entire article, go to: http://www.iht.com/articles/reuters/2008/02/08/asia/OUKWD-UK-INDIA-MAYAWATI-QUOTA.php]
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Affirmative action for immigrants (Norway)
The Norwegian government will implement a program of moderate immigrant hiring quotas at 12 state services.
The test program will include the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), the Directorate of Public Construction and Property, the Norwegian State Housing Bank and nine other state operations, Aftenposten reports.
The moderate quotas will give "positive special treatment" to immigrants when they have approximately the same qualifications as other applicants.
"Moderate quotas are a reasonably strong tool," said Minister of Government Administration and Reform Heidi Grande Røys.
"This applies primarily to those immigrants who have the greatest problems entering the job market. We are not talking about Swedes," Røys said, and pointed out that even though immigrant unemployment is dropping, the gap between jobless Norwegians and out of work immigrants remains large.
[To view the entire article, go to: http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article2160440.ece]
The test program will include the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), the Directorate of Public Construction and Property, the Norwegian State Housing Bank and nine other state operations, Aftenposten reports.
The moderate quotas will give "positive special treatment" to immigrants when they have approximately the same qualifications as other applicants.
"Moderate quotas are a reasonably strong tool," said Minister of Government Administration and Reform Heidi Grande Røys.
"This applies primarily to those immigrants who have the greatest problems entering the job market. We are not talking about Swedes," Røys said, and pointed out that even though immigrant unemployment is dropping, the gap between jobless Norwegians and out of work immigrants remains large.
[To view the entire article, go to: http://www.aftenposten.no/english/local/article2160440.ece]
Saturday, August 25, 2007
BET Founder Favors Quotas for Black Ownership
From Maynard Institute, August 22, 2007
By Richard Prince
Black Entertainment Television founder Robert Johnson says he favors not only affirmative action, but quotas, and that many black reporters who criticized BET “wanted to prove they could be tough to their white editors.”Johnson is interviewed in the new paperback version of the Washington Post’s series, “Being a Black Man,” (PublicAffairs) which includes some additional material, including an interview of Johnson by Post editor Joe Davidson.“I definitely favor affirmative action,” Johnson said. “I favor affirmative action to the point that I think there should be some way of measuring affirmative action with quotas and other forms of accountability, that says if you benefit from the government you have an affirmative obligation to meet certain goals in the way this money is being allocated or being spent or the way you’re providing job opportunities. I’m saying you have an obligation to go out and find people, and they’re out there. I know because I go out and I find them. So you can’t say you can’t find them.”At another point, Johnson said he prefers “mandated goals to say if you use the public airways, if the public airways belong to the public, we’re going to mandate 30 percent of the radio stations be owned by black people. If you’re getting money from the government — I’m buying X billion dollars with minority suppliers. If you’re getting oil mining rights, I’m going to mandate that there be X number of black-owned gas stations. That’s the only way you’ll get there,” he said, referring to economic parity.Johnson became the first African American billionaire when the parent company of Black Entertainment Television was sold to Viacom for nearly $3 billion in 2000.
[To see the entire article, go to: http://www.freepress.net/news/25696 ]
By Richard Prince
Black Entertainment Television founder Robert Johnson says he favors not only affirmative action, but quotas, and that many black reporters who criticized BET “wanted to prove they could be tough to their white editors.”Johnson is interviewed in the new paperback version of the Washington Post’s series, “Being a Black Man,” (PublicAffairs) which includes some additional material, including an interview of Johnson by Post editor Joe Davidson.“I definitely favor affirmative action,” Johnson said. “I favor affirmative action to the point that I think there should be some way of measuring affirmative action with quotas and other forms of accountability, that says if you benefit from the government you have an affirmative obligation to meet certain goals in the way this money is being allocated or being spent or the way you’re providing job opportunities. I’m saying you have an obligation to go out and find people, and they’re out there. I know because I go out and I find them. So you can’t say you can’t find them.”At another point, Johnson said he prefers “mandated goals to say if you use the public airways, if the public airways belong to the public, we’re going to mandate 30 percent of the radio stations be owned by black people. If you’re getting money from the government — I’m buying X billion dollars with minority suppliers. If you’re getting oil mining rights, I’m going to mandate that there be X number of black-owned gas stations. That’s the only way you’ll get there,” he said, referring to economic parity.Johnson became the first African American billionaire when the parent company of Black Entertainment Television was sold to Viacom for nearly $3 billion in 2000.
[To see the entire article, go to: http://www.freepress.net/news/25696 ]
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