The views of managment on the implementation of affirmative action in a large South African organisation

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to report findings of an investigation into management's views on particular aspects that are considered important for the success of affirmative action in a certain large South African organisation. The key areas of performance in respect of the implementation of affirmative action are identified as equalising opportunities, eradicating discrimination, the process of actively integrating affirmative action into human resource planning and the general management of the organisation and the process of taking affirmative action beyond the boundaries of the organisation into the community. The results provide a basis for investigating aspects that may help with the implementation of affirmative action, on the one hand, and aspects that might hamper or undermine its successful implementation, on the other. The article also reflects management's views on the extent to which the aforementioned issues actually contribute to the successful implementation of affirmative action in their respective departments/sections/teams within the organisation. The target population for the study was the totals number of managers (1005) in the D and E bands (Paterson grading system) in the organisation, from which a stratified random sample was taken to form the group of respondents totalling 300 managers. Based on the findings some conclusions are drawn, potential implications spelled out and recommendations made.