Difference Between Equity and Equality
Equity vs Equality
One of the differences is the fact that equality obviously denotes that everyone is at the same level, whereas equity, in business parlance, denotes the ownership of the shares of a company. Equality alludes to the identical apportionment where dealings, values or qualities are concerned. Equity represents fairness, or what may be termed as the equality of outcomes. This involves factoring in aspects of the system that have put particular groups at a disadvantage.
An example, which would bring out the principal difference between the two, would be how a turkey may be carved up at at family’s dinner table. Equality would mean that everybody ‘“ father, mother and children – would get a piece of the same size. Equity, on the other hand, would mean that they take the sensible option, and divide it according to their needs, i.e. larger sized pieces for the adult and smaller pieces for the children.
When we say equity, we refer to the qualities of justness, fairness, impartiality and even handedness. When we talk about equality, we are talking about equal sharing and exact division.
A perfect example of the practical demonstration of the difference between the two concepts, is the feminist movement. Now, if women demand they should be treated in the same way as men, that would not be possible – equality would not be possible – because women and men are different, and cannot be treated in exactly the same way. However, if they demanded equity in how the world treats them, it would be a genuine demand, because now they are demanding that they be given the same rights as men have as human beings. It is equity that is desirable, not sameness.
Once again, in business parlance, equity denotes the value of something. Suppose I bought a laptop for $500 a year ago, and tried selling it today. It would probably fetch around $250. That is its equity value. Equality, of course, only means exact distribution. Really the difference between the two alludes to the old debate about the preference of quality over quantity.
If one were to take a classical example to distinguish between the two concepts, one could go back to the days of the cold war when the communist block countries tried to practice equality by paying everyone the same, irrespective of their station in life. The capitalist block, on the other hand, paid according to merit and productivity. The efficacy of the later approach, is brought out by the subsequent collapse of the communist order.
Therefore, although seeming to be similar, equity and equality are indeed very different kettles of fish.
Summary:
1. Equality denotes that everyone is at the same level, whereas equity in business parlance denotes the ownership of the shares of a company.
2. Equity refers to the qualities of justness, fairness, impartiality and even handedness, while equality is about equal sharing and exact division.
3. Equality equals quantity, whereas equity equals quality.
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Thanks for this article. Whoever wrote this, I thank you for differentiating things. It makes sense since a lot of people today do not practice proper diction, or proper choice of words.
Manisha (the author), you’ve got a fan in me! You’ve clarified equity vs. equality justly… FYI, it would be interesting to read Islamic principles which (I believe) follow the equity principle as you’ve described it. Be blessed…
it would be interesting to read Islamic principles which (I believe) follow the equity principle as you’ve described it. Be blessed…
Interesting indeed!
Great article, I’m actually taking a class in anthropology right now, and this really helps a lot!
Not trying to dispute the correctness of the article… but, it seems a bit strange to me that:
Equality – E-Quality – is constructed as regarding Quantity
while E-quity is regarding to Quality
Now isn’t that confusing?
What does the E-part mean then?
I like this article a lot because I’ve never thought to compare the idea of equity vs equality. They used to look like two completely different words that only sound similar so I thought this article was kind of a joke. But it makes sense and I especially love the example of the feminist movement as I’ve never thought of it like that before
Thank you for the distinction between Equality and Equity. In Taylor Caldwell’s “Dialogues With The Devil”, Michael and Lucifer argue about this distinction. Heaven holds that Equity not Equality is given to those who ascend. Those who descend will be assured of Equality.
Nice article and it helped clarify the jargon aspect of these two very similar terms for a job role I’m going for. However having worked in Equalities your definition is very different to that which I was always working with; for me equality is not about blind exact division, it was about each according to his needs. This is why the use of the word equity stumpted me in the job description. I understand, as a law student, that equity is the legal term, but I think essentially both these terms mean the same thing. Just as the words ‘harm or wrongdoing’ and ‘tort’ do; one is just he legal term for an already established concept. I think this is a more accurate explanation of the difference between the two. Thank you for the article. I will have to decide now whether to go into what I truly believe or what is accepted use of these terms in my interview; don’t want to come across pedantic, but on the other hand I’m right. An age old problem I guess.