ENGLISH 112
MERITOCRACY IN THE REAL WORLD
One instance of where you can find meritocracy in the real world is in the United States. I don’t feel that the country is run exclusively on meritocracy, however I do feel you can point to a few aspects and say that it resembles meritocracy. Back in 1883 the Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act was passed (Pendleton Act) which states that jobs within the federal government were to be awarded based on merit not political connections or affiliations. Presidential appointments are supposed to follow this basis. When someone is appointed by the president they are vetted by countless people and most likely must go through a confirmation hearing. If they are not up to the qualifications, they will not make it through the vetting process or the confirmation hearing. One example in the United States that isn’t government based is college. In colleges to get a degree you have to pass a series of classes. Only the ones who are qualified will earn the merit of a degree.
IN FICTION
For the fictional example of meritocracy, we head to Scranton, Pennsylvania to Dunder Mifflin, the location of the TV show the Office. In season 6 episode 3 of the Office, Michael Scott and Jim Halpert are co-managers and were told that there is not enough money to give everyone a pay raise at the same amount that they were given the previous year. With this dilemma they must decide how the money will be distributed. The first proposed idea was to give it all to the sales staff because they bring in the most money. That didn’t sit well with other people in the staff because they believe they worked just as hard. Back to the drawing board the co-managers decide on a merit-based system where each person would get a .5% raise for things they have done. Once the office realizes what is going on they once again get upset because there are still some people who don’t get a raise.