James A. Buford Jr.

About the author: James A. Buford Jr. is a management consultant and a professor in the College of Business at Auburn University.

Though discrimination is not as rampant as it was in the past, minorities and women are still underrepresented in many types of jobs. Affirmative action programs ensure that qualified minorities and women are included in the pool of potential candidates for skilled positions. The failure to hire talented women and minorities is a poor use of human resources, and will ultimately harm the workplace and the national economy.

You will, of course, wish to know my credentials for presenting a conservative case for affirmative action in employment. Well, first, as a social scientist with the requisite degrees and academic publications, I am licensed to diagnose the ills of...