Fiscal Year 2006 Annual Report on the Operations and Accomplishments of the Office of the General Counsel

[Excerpt] The Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 amended Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII) to give litigation authority to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and provide for a General Counsel, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate for 4-year term, with responsibility for conducting the Commission\u27s litigation program. Following transfer of enforcement functions from the U.S. Department of Labor to the Commission under a 1978 Presidential Reorganization Plan, the General Counsel became responsible for conducting Commission litigation under the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA) and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA). With the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), the General Counsel became responsible for conducting Commission litigation under the employment provisions of that statute (Title I; effective July 1992). The mission of EEOC’s Office of General Counsel (OGC) is to conduct litigation on behalf of the Commission to obtain relief for victims of employment discrimination and ensure compliance with the statutes that EEOC is charged with enforcing. Under Title VII and the ADA, the Commission can sue nongovernmental employers with 15 or more employees. The Commission’s suit authority under the ADEA (20 or more employees) and the EPA (no employee minimum) includes state and local governmental employers as well as private employers. Title VII, the ADA, and the ADEA also cover labor organizations and employment agencies, and the EPA prohibits labor organizations from attempting to cause an employer to violate that statute. OGC also represents the Commission on administrative claims and litigation brought by agency applicants and employees, and provides legal advice to the agency on employment-related matters

Opening Doors to all Candidates: Tips for Ensuring Access for Applicants with Disabilities

[Excerpt] The goal of the hiring process is to attract and identify the individual who has the best mix of skills and attributes for the job available. Ensuring that all qualified individuals can participate in the process is key to achieving this goal. By examining their hiring procedures and implementing some simple steps, employers can widen their pool of potential talent and ensure that they do not miss out when the best person for the job happens to have a disability

Diverse Perspectives: People With Disabilities Fulfilling Your Business Goals

[Excerpt] By fostering a culture of diversity, or a capacity to appreciate and value individual differences, in all aspects of their operations, employers benefit from varied perspectives on how to confront business challenges and achieve success. Although the term is most often used to refer to differences among individuals such as ethnicity, gender, age and religion, diversity actually encompasses the infinite range of individuals’ unique attributes and experiences. As the nation’s largest minority—comprising almost 50 million individuals—people with disabilities contribute to diversity, and businesses can enhance their competitive edge by taking steps to ensure they are integrated into their workforce and customer base

Career-focused Mentoring for Youth: The What, Why, and How?

[Excerpt] When asked to describe an ideal employee, attributes such as being a hard worker, a team player, and a good communicator are frequently cited by employers as being even more important than technical expertise. According, however, to a recent survey of 461 employers conducted by the Conference Board, Corporate Voices for Working Families, the Partnership for 21st Century Skills, and the Society for Human Resources many new entrants to the workforce lack these important skills. These business leaders reported that while the three R\u27s are still fundamental to every employee\u27s ability to do the job, knowledge of applied skills is even more important. (Are They Really Ready to Work? Employers’ Perspectives on the Basic Knowledge and Applied Skills of New Entrants to the 21st Century U.S. Workforce (2006)). One remedy may be found in mentoring. Career-focused mentoring provides young people the opportunity to get a glimpse of the world of work that may not otherwise be available to them. It also allows them to gain and practice skills that are useful in professional and other settings, and to prepare for life as an adult

Advancing Opportunities: Accomodations Resources for Federal Managers and Employees

[Excerpt] Every day the nation benefits from the contributions of individuals with disabilities who serve in the federal workforce. Many of these individuals are entitled to workplace adjustments, or accommodations, in order to effectively carry out their duties. A variety of resources are available to assist federal managers in making these accommodations so they can hire, retain and advance qualified individuals with disabilities. An accommodation is a modification to a work environment or job functions to enable a qualified person with a disability to benefit from the same employment opportunities and rights afforded similarly situated individuals without disabilities. The following examples illustrate accommodations in practice in the federal setting

Women of Color: Their Employment in the Private Sector

This examination of the employment status of minority women or women of color relies primarily on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission\u27s (EEOC) EEO-1 report. Characteristics of employment are examined from five different perspectives: total employment, employment by job group, employment of officials and managers, the movement of women from white collar to management positions and per capita charge rates by industry. Among the conclusions included in the report: race/ethnicity and industry both have an effect on per capita charge rates; firms in Engineering and Management Services are least likely to be the subject of a charge by each of the minority groups of women, except Asian women; Automotive Dealers and Service Stations is consistently ranked among the industries with the highest per capital charge rates; Construction-based industries, such as Special Trade Contractors and General Building Contractors, have high per capita charge rates for both African American women and Hispanic women. The highest ranked industry with highest level of per capita charges by Asian women is Apparel and Other Textile Products and for Native American women it is Social Services

Circle of Champions: Innovators in Employing All Americans

[Excerpt] The Circle of Champions (CoC) is the distinguished group of U.S. businesses and organizations that have received the Secretary of Labor’s New Freedom Initiative Award for its innovative and proactive efforts to recruit, hire, and promote people with disabilities. The CoC is now working to share its proven strategies with businesses that want to hire and retain talented employees

Strategic Connections: Recruiting Candidates with Disabilities

[Excerpt] Many individuals with disabilities possess precisely these attributes. Yet, as a whole, individuals with disabilities represent one of the largest untapped pools of skills and talent in the U.S. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, just over 60 percent of men ages 16 to 65 who have disabilities were working in 2000, compared to 80 percent of men in that age group without disabilities. For women in the same age group, the numbers were 51.4 and 67.3 percent, respectively. Individuals with disabilities have the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities to succeed in today’s rapidly changing workplace. From company headquarters to the factory floor, technology continues to drastically alter the way individuals work, helping to level the playing field for individuals with disabilities and expand opportunities for employers to benefit from their capabilities