Wage and earnings differentials between white males and similarly situated white women and between white males and similarly situated people across all ethnic and gender cohorts remain vast. Go to the Bureau of Labour Statistics website at www.bls.gov for more information. The question in a supposedly colour-blind and sex-blind America is: Why?

Subjective decision-making drives managers in choice situations like those presented on The Apprentice. It makes sense that some people may wonder why people with the same levels of preparation and performance in the same jobs make different amounts of money.

It also makes sense that some people wonder why deserving and high-performing people never make it to the top levels of many corporate organisations in America. In spite of their training and performance, they never get to compete in the upper reaches of corporate organisations. They never get to compete there, because they never get hired for those jobs.

It is completely nonsensical that all cohorts of similarly prepared and high-performing workers are not making similar amounts of money. Other subjective considerations (like racism and sexism) likely have some negative bearing on wage and earnings levels of people who are not white males.

So wage and earnings differentials continue to exist in a country where people claim that there is equal access for high performers in social and business institutions. Subjective decision-making ensures that this is not the case.

What The Donald's shenanigans proved is that people in positions of power can "make sociology" by excluding high performers (examples: Alla from Season 4 and Amy Henry from Season 1) to achieve pre-determined hiring results that they want. (Examples abound: like placing an undeserving Rebecca in the finals or ensuring that Boyfriend Bill would never have to compete head-to-head with Amy Henry in the finals of Season 1).

Systematic exclusion continues to exist in corporate America. The Donald's behaviour on this show highlights this fact. The inconsistencies become more glaring when he pontificates that the show is "business" to him, rather than mere entertainment.

--Singer