Racism has been present since before civilization when bands of humans travelled around the world and subsequently developed different features and skin color based on their location. Although it can be argued that there have been great strides in the fight against racism in most nations and cultures, it still exists and in many cases it presents a subtle form of discrimination that often prevents businesses from hiring the best people for the job.

Racism in Today’s Job Market

Today’s job market is filled with qualified individuals from all different races, backgrounds, nationalities and sexual orientations. However, there have been statistics which show that in many Nordic countries,South Africa and the other European countries  and the like which has demonstrated a subtle racist tendency in hiring practices.

Many businesses consist of employees with the same race and background which is virtually impossible to achieve using fair hiring practices. In many cases, the tendencies to hire only within a certain racial group are subtle and in fact may seem undetectable until you see the results in who gets hired over the years.

How Racism Prevents the Right People from Being Hired

There are a number of ways that racism keeps the best people from being selected for the job. Although there are occasionally accounts of obvious racial bias that appear in news stories from time to time, for the most part the practices are quite subtle.

Quality: Your business gets the best and brightest when racism is not a factor in hiring practices. With that element removed from the picture, the real talent will stand out.

Diversity: Bringing in talent that is not only different in terms of skin color, but also in background helps grow the business in a positive manner. Ideas that normally would never be discussed are brought up which helps expand the business.

How to Shift the Focus Away from Racism to Personal Qualifications

There are a few simple techniques that businesses can use in their hiring practices that will help end racism in their hiring practices.

Remove All Racial Indications: Do not look at the photo or identification information about the applicant and judge only from their qualifications. This is arguably the easiest way to make the choice in hiring someone without racial prejudice.

Spread out the Decision: In many cases, the racism often resides in one individual who makes the decision and they may not fully be aware of it. By bringing in others to see the final candidates, it reduces the elements of racism in making the final decision.

Racism is an issue that has been with human race for thousands of years and it will not fully fade in our lifetimes. However, it is more than possible to hire the right person for the job and leave their skin color, religion, nationality or sexual preference out from consideration. The emphasis should be on hiring the best person for the job and encouraging racial diversity based on merit, not just skin color.

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