Price v. Civil Service Commission

Opinion

TOBRINER, J.

In this case we must determine whether a governmental entity may voluntarily adopt a race-conscious, affirmative action hiring program of limited duration to alleviate an underrepresentation of minority employees which the entity finds is attributable to its own past discriminatory employment practices.

The trial court in this action enjoined the County of Sacramento from implementing such a remedial hiring program, concluding that any measure that attempts to increase the proportion of minority workers through the employment of hiring ratios or goals violates the…