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Tim Cook Met With Jesse Jackson for 'Positive and Productive' Discussion

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Apple CEO Tim Cook met with civil rights activist Jesse Jackson on Monday, reports USA Today. Though Jackson declined to comment on what he and Cook discussed, Jackson is currently in the Bay Area for his Rainbow PUSH Coalition, which is hosting a workshop at Intel on racial diversity at technology companies.

The Rainbow PUSH Coalition is a non-profit organization that champions social justice, civil rights, and political activism, and recently, it has been targeting tech companies for not employing more women and minorities. At its Silicon Valley meeting, taking place on December 10, the Coalition is expected to discuss ways tech companies can improve diversity in the workplace.

The Coalition, alongside Jackson, will also hold a rally with labor leaders and service workers outside Apple's headquarters in Cupertino to highlight the growing wealth gap in Silicon Valley.

Speaking about the meeting with Tim Cook, Jackson said that he and the Apple CEO discussed "a range of subjects" for approximately one hour, and that the meeting was "positive and productive."
"I am impressed with him and the conversation," Jackson said in an interview on Tuesday. "He has a real vision for Apple and he sees the value in inclusiveness."
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Diversity and equality have been an important topics for Tim Cook as of late, as the Apple CEO recently came out as gay. In the letter declaring his sexuality, Cook told the world that Apple will continue to take a strong stand on furthering workplace equality. An August diversity report revealed that 7 out of 10 Apple employees around the globe are male, and Apple's U.S. workforce consists of 55 percent white employees, 15 percent Asian, 11 percent Hispanic, and 7 percent Black.

At the time, Tim Cook said that he was unhappy with Apple's diversity numbers and promised to improve them.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Article Link: Tim Cook Met With Jesse Jackson for 'Positive and Productive' Discussion
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/12/09/tim-cook-jesse-jackson-meeting/
M

macintologist

macrumors 6502a
May 3, 2004
637
878
I fully support Tim Cook's recent efforts to promote diversity and equality at Apple. His speech at the Alabama Academy of Honor in October was fantastic.
 
Aluminum213

Aluminum213

macrumors 68040
Mar 16, 2012
3,597
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Let's see the percentage of Apple employees that are black, then those complaining about Cook meeting Jackson will keep quite


Apple isn't exactly a portrait for employee diversity
 
I

iPad Air

macrumors regular
Oct 24, 2013
229
48
SC, USA
This stuff does not make any sense. I mean, about workplace diversity.

Workplace diversity depends on who wants to go work there. For example, if more women would like to work at Apple, no doubt Apple will very much welcome them! If less women want to work at Apple, so be it!

The same goes for any other business. Not sure why businesses have to be "targeted" by anyone for not having the ultimate "workplace diversity".
 
QCassidy352

QCassidy352

macrumors G5
Mar 20, 2003
12,028
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re: the gender/racial/ethnic breakdown at Apple, the question I have is how those numbers (70% men, 55% white, etc.) compare to the numbers coming out of schools/programs relevant to the fields Apple is in, which would mean a particular emphasis on engineering and comp sci schools/programs.

And of course you'd also have to look historically, because even if 50% of engineering grads TODAY are female (which I highly doubt), you can't expect apple to have 50% female employees if 90% of grads were male until recently.

My overall point being that whether those numbers are problematic depends, to me, anyway, on whether they are reflective of the available talent *in the relevant fields,* not whether they mirror the US population as a whole.

My very strong suspicion is that, if judged by those criteria, Apple's "diversity" would look just fine.
 
jonblatho

jonblatho

macrumors 68030
Jan 20, 2014
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I'm all for diversity, I really am. As Apple says, inclusion inspires innovation.

But if someone less qualified who is a minority gets a job instead of a more qualified white male for the sake of improving diversity numbers, that's disappointing and questionable. Introducing (further?) discrimination into the hiring process for pretty percentages fixes nothing, and it ultimately makes a worse Apple, though we'd likely never be able to tell.

View everyone, regardless of gender, race, gender identity, sexuality, religion, age, etc., equally, and let the most qualified candidate win. Because none of it should matter anyway.
 
TsunamiTheClown

TsunamiTheClown

macrumors 6502a
Apr 28, 2011
571
12
Fiery+Cross+Reef
The Reverend is on the case. Its gg.

What the heck does a CEO of a technology company have to do with the JJ? Is there any doubt that this whole "workplace diversity" issue is just a front? The Reverend is simply a tool. By meeting with him Tim is really calling the veracity of his "personal stance" on a number of issues.
 
Lucky736

Lucky736

macrumors 6502a
Jan 18, 2004
995
662
US
This dude and Al Sharpton need to never grace anything other than a prison floor and a set of bars again. Add Louis F to that list too. Biggest bunch of crooks I have ever seen, spiritual and physical thieves.
 
T

Tough Guy

macrumors regular
Jun 2, 2014
144
2
Aluminum213 said:
Let's see the percentage of Apple employees that are black, then those complaining about Cook meeting Jackson will keep quite


Apple isn't exactly a portrait for employee diversity
Click to expand...

So you're arguing that people should be hired based on racial quotas? Interesting logic.

Equality of opportunity doesn't mean equality of results. Period.
 
T

TWSS37

macrumors 65816
Feb 4, 2011
1,107
232
How about just hiring people that are most qualified for the job moving forward?
 
U

unibility

macrumors 6502a
Apr 6, 2012
629
635
"Tim Cook Met With Jesse Jackson for 'Positive and Productive' Discussion"

...hell why not get Al Sharpton or Obama. They're one in the same. Both liberals. :D
 
M

Macboy Pro

macrumors 6502a
Feb 16, 2011
730
52
normanfox said:
Because Jobs did not diversify his workforce. 99% whitey.
Click to expand...

Did you bother to read the article? 55% White. And Jesse Jackson is a Civil Rights "leader" in name only. He is simply a race baiter and uses situations and circumstances to promote himself and increase his wealth.
 
T

Tough Guy

macrumors regular
Jun 2, 2014
144
2
iPad Air said:
This stuff does not make any sense. I mean, about workplace diversity.

Workplace diversity depends on who wants to go work there. For example, if more women would like to work at Apple, no doubt Apple will very much welcome them! If less women want to work at Apple, so be it!

The same goes for any other business. Not sure why businesses have to be "targeted" by anyone for not having the ultimate "workplace diversity".
Click to expand...

Jackson, Sharpton and their supporters are racist. Point blank. It's a black and white issue for them.

Quotas are codified racism.
 
Lucky736

Lucky736

macrumors 6502a
Jan 18, 2004
995
662
US
On a lighter note, doesn't Dr. Dre count? :D

Or maybe he wants Condoleezza Rice to join now that she has aided, not singlehandedly, in screwing up College Football as well.
 
PowerBook-G5

PowerBook-G5

macrumors 65816
Jul 30, 2013
1,243
1,179
I am all for hiring the right person for the job - no matter their ethnicity. But when people are complaining that X ethnicity isn't represented enough, it's usually because the person of Y ethnicity is better suited for the job (unless the employer is discriminating based on ethnicity, which is totally wrong).

A company shouldn't have to hire X many people from/have a certain percentage of employees from various ethnicities. A company should hire the right people who have the right skill sets who can do the job the best.
 
dannyyankou

dannyyankou

macrumors G5
Mar 2, 2012
13,027
28,036
Westchester, NY
Aluminum213 said:
Let's see the percentage of Apple employees that are black, then those complaining about Cook meeting Jackson will keep quite


Apple isn't exactly a portrait for employee diversity
Click to expand...

Apple isn't so bad. 55% are white, which is lower than the total population. Blacks make up 7%, which is still low but better than most companies (Microsoft is 3.5% black).
 
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