… is from page 144 of Tim Harford’s 2008 book, The Logic of Life:
[B]ureaucracies need to fight harder than most against racism, because they are more prone to it than are firms who face fierce competition. To the extent that racism is taste-based – that is, pure bigotry – private companies are shooting themselves in the feet when they allow racist managers free rein. Competitors will note and exploit biased hiring procedures, snapping up neglected talent. It may take a while, but it is one force we can identify for sure that works against racism. For a government department, no such luck. It’s not enough to wait for bigoted departments to go out of business, because they never will.
