To achieve equal opportunity in employment requires a mix of affirmative action legislation, anti-discrimination legislation and managing diversity approaches. Discuss.

Equality is the complicated theory to explain because of the wide variety of meaning attached to concept. Depends on the article of Jewson and Mason’s (1986), they express the equality in liberal and radical approach. In the liberal view, equal opportunity, this exists when all individuals are freely able to compete for social rewards. As Webb (1977) said, the liberal approach which is according to a belief in the rights of the individual to universally possible standards of justice and citizenship.
The emphasis is on the individual, for example job selection should be focus on the merit of individual which performs fairly. On the other hand, the radical approach is to achieve not only the equal opportunity, but also the equal outcome. Compare to liberal approach, the focus of the radical approach is not on individuals, but on groups. “The ideal of the radical approach is a situation where every workforce is representative of all the social groups available to it” (Kaler, 2001: 53). For instance, although individual who is the group representative, the principle of selection will not choose the merit alone. To conclude, equality can be theorized in liberal and radical approach.

Regard to the complicated conception of equality, to get the equal opportunity in employment which also is a complex and huge progress. It requires a mix of affirmative action legislation, anti-discrimination legislation and managing diversity approach. In the following context, it will definite and explain employment opportunity, affirmative action and managing diversity approach in Australia. Moreover, it will argues that to achieve equal opportunity requires all three approaches -- affirmative action legislation,