You have been asked to look into a company’s promotion policy. Maria, a person of Latino ancestry, has filed a complaint that she was unfairly eliminated for consideration for a promotion because of her distinctive accent. She is a second generation native-born American citizen with a graduate degree, and has been with the company for 10 years and in her current position for 7. Alex, the person who received the promotion, is an Anglo, also has a graduate degree, but has less time either with the company or in the position. He is, however, considered to be an “up and comer” and has better job evaluations than Maria. Maria points out that she is not only the only Latina, she is the only person of color and the only woman in the department. She claims that her lower evaluations reflect a built-in bias on the part of her White male supervisors. She also states that she was told by her supervisor that she was not being promoted because he feared that their clients would have trouble understanding her accent. She alleges that the company is engaging in discriminatory practices.

The company argues that Maria is a good employee but is often loud and aggressive in her approach to co-workers and supervisors and has had some problems with attendance and tardiness. She has been counseled twice by her supervisor for tardiness, and once for absence. Each time she gave family problems as reasons. She explained that in each case a family member needed help and it was her duty to be there for the family member. When the issue of accent was introduced, it was acknowledged that it was a major consideration but was not because of discrimination. Maria often spoke very rapidly, and her accent made understanding difficult when she did. The company alleges that the ability to communicate clearly was an essential component of the job in question. Evaluate the situation. Are there indications of structural or individual discrimination involved or prejudicial attitudes? Is there any indication that Maria was unfairly treated? Is the company within its rights to expect its employees who communicate directly with customers to speak in unaccented English? Regardless of your findings, come up with a plan to avoid this sort of thing from happening again.

Students will submit the reference list and outline of their research paper. 75 points

Reference List and Outline
Category Points % Description
Outline and Organization 35 47 Outline lists the main topics the project will cover and incorporates the key elements of the chosen topic scenario; outline is clearly written and well organized.
Reference List 30 40 Reference list contains at least four credible sources.
Formatting 10 13 Submission is in correct APA format, with a Title page.
Total 75 100 A quality paper will meet or exceed all of the above requirements.

The following are best practices in preparing this project.
• Include a Title page in APA format. For information on APA formatting, please see the APA reference materials located in your Syllabus.
• Include an introductory paragraph that introduces your chosen scenario and previews the main topics your paper will cover.
• Include a concluding paragraph that summarizes your main points and the benefits of learning about the issues you’ve discussed.
• Use headers to organize your paper and divide into sections as appropriate.
• Include a Reference page in APA format, with at least four credible sources.
• Check to be sure you’ve covered all the questions posed in your topic scenario and that you’ve provided clear strategies for problems that have been presented.