In the real world, yes it is.
I'd quote policies, but I can't do that without identifying my employer. (Similar to Emily's Cat's concerns in one of the insurance threads.)
What I will say is that I work for an extremely large entity that has multiple DEI officers in multiple departments. I looked at the pages for several of those and none of them say anything about giving advantages to anyone in the hiring process.
Here are a few of the things they have done in the name of DEI:
- Added menstrual products in all restrooms
- Created lactation spaces
- Implemented guidelines for office assignment and remote/hybrid work
- Hosted a Tamarkoz method workshop
- Hosted workshop focusing on taking care of self and others
A lot of it seems to be related to helping people with different backgrounds collaborate and work together. (Inclusivity)
How many here have actually been on hiring committees and know how they operate? I have. Many times over my career and, I think three times in the past two years.
In terms of hiring, our efforts for diversity don't go into how resumes or interviews are evaluated. It
does play into recruitment, however. By that I mean where we advertise for candidates. Which journals, organizations, etc. we might post an opening in. If we are hiring a chemist, we will reach out to the chemistry departments of nearby universities. For higher level positions, we might also post in journals and professional organizations that have a more national (or even international) reach. This may include professional organizations that serve a particular demographic. (If there's a society of Hispanic Chemists, for example. Don't know if that exists.)
The committees I've been on usually got 20-30 resumes in response. these tend to be pretty diverse. (I've seen people in India with PhDs apply for dishwasher or lab assistant jobs.) But when we evaluate the resumes, we do so based on stated job requirements and preferences (two different categories) and how the resume matches what was requested. Then we interview usually the top three candidates. Again, the interview is graded based on the answers given to questions asked.
Now, could DEI efforts result in an advantage for a minority candidate? Sure. It's possible that someone could be so worried about appearing biased that they unintentionally bias themselves the other way. But the committees have three members (and an HR rep to coordinate, but they don't get a vote), so it's unlikely.
There are efforts to make sure that the search committee has some diversity. (At least one woman or minority.)
In terms of hiring here:
Diversity is addressed by recruiting a diverse pool of candidates.
Equity is unbiased evaluation of candidates.
Inclusion is people of diverse backgrounds working together as an integrated team.
The only system I've ever encountered that gave extra points have been civil service systems. (Not the hiring I'm talking about.) I looked up the extra points for Illinois:
- Veterans (10 points)
- Purple heart recipients (10 points)
- National Guard members (5 points)
- Surviving spouse of veteran who dies or was disabled in service. (10 points)
- Parent of an unmarried veteran who dies or was disabled in service. (10 points)
No points for ethnicity, as far as I can see. Just for veterans.