Filed under: News, Lynnette Khalfani-Cox
How's this for a failure of government: A recent EEOC report shows a shocking number of federal departments and agencies are amazingly lax when it comes to submitting legally-required reports about their diversity initiatives. Among the findings of the EEOC's latest
Annual Report on the Federal Workforce for 2009:
http://xml.channel.aol.com/xmlpublisher/fetch.v2.xml?option=expand_relative_urls&dataUrlNodes=uiConfig,feedConfig,entry&id=932134&pid=932133&uts=1284410482
http://cdn.channel.aol.com/cs_feed_v1_6/csfeedwrapper.swf
Celeb Jobs Before They Were Famous
Mary J. Blige is known for her creatively coiffed crown of hair for good reason...
Stephen Lovekin, Getty Images
AP
BlackVoices.com
Before They Were Famous
Mary J. Blige is known for her creatively coiffed crown of hair for good reason...
Before They Were Famous
Mary J. Blige:
At-Home Hairdresser
From Starpulse.com: "Blige spent the first few years of her life in Savannah, GA, before moving with her mother and older sister to the Schlobam housing projects in Yonkers, NY. Her rough life there produced more than a few scars, physical and otherwise, and Blige dropped out of high school her junior year, instead spending time doing her friends' hair in her mother's apartment and hanging out."
Mary started to make her own way in the world in a profession that many take for granted. The at-home hairdresser is a very important staple of many communities, as she uses her skills to help women who can't afford a professional salon to stay pampered and beautiful. We salute you!
Before They Were Famous
Denzel Washington is no stranger to the hair business himself...
Before They Were Famous
Denzel Washington: Barber
From Tiscali: "It's often been said that the boy picked up his desire to act from the flamboyant communication that went on around him at this time. He certainly picked up a desire to work - the family ethic was very strong - and young Denzel found himself labouring in barber shops and beauty parlours from the age of 11."
The neighborhood barber is an important institution in many communities. Even though they don't get paid much, men's salons are like private social clubs that allow them to relax and connect at an affordable price. Workers in these establishments not only groom the body -- they soothe the soul.
Before They Were Famous
Ellen is known for her dancing, but she used to be a different kind of mover back in the day...
Before They Were Famous
Ellen Degenres: Car Wash Driver
From CareerBuilder.com: "I actually liked my first job. I was driving cars out of a car wash, you know, once the car comes out, you get in and you wipe it. That was exciting to me to drive the nice cars and wipe down the [dashboard] with Emerald."
We often take for granted all the folks at the local war wash. They may be working for little more than tips, but they keep our cars clean and fresh, making a huge positive impact on our daily lives.
Before They Were Famous
Jennifer Lopez has displayed a high level of discipline and organization in plotting her megastar career. She must have learned those skills during one of her first jobs...
Before They Were Famous
Jennifer Lopez: Legal Assistant
From 2spare.com: "Long before Jennifer Lopez sang, danced and acted her way to superstardom, she briefly traded in her velour tracksuit for a suit of the pin-striped variety while working at a law office."
It's hard to imagine someone as driven as Jennifer Lopez being an assistant, but J.Lo paid her dues by helping her bosses meet their goals. It's hard for anybody to put others first, but that's what assistants do in every field. They deserve to be appreciated for this.
Before They Were Famous
Before Angela Bassett became a huge star in front of the camera, she earned her living doing business on the other side of the lens...
Before They Were Famous
Angela Bassett:
Photo Researcher
From Yuddy.com: "After working as a beauty salon receptionist and photo researcher, Bassett got started with her acting career in New York Theater, after which she landed her first role-as a prostitute-in the 1985 TV movie 'Doubletake,' starring Richard Crenna and Beverly D'Angelo. The following year she landed her first official film role as a TV reporter in 'F/X.'"
Whenever we look at a magazine, or in a book with pictures, we are seeing the work of some one like Bassett in her early career. We never think of the faceless, nameless men and women who look for all the photos that illustrate concepts, news and ideas in every facet of our daily lives, ranging from Web sites to education. But every one of those photos was hand-selected by someone, most often an anonymous, but dedicated and not-too-well-paid pro. What would life be like without all the hundreds of pictures we enjoy every day?
Before They Were Famous
* Only 79% of agencies and departments submitted Management Directive 715 (MD-715) reports. These reports -- which are supposed to be given to the EEOC annually, so the EEOC can review and approve them -- spell out a department's employment figures by race, national origin, sex and disability. The reports are mandatory under federal law.
* Just 61% of federal agencies and departments issued written policy statements expressing their commitment to equal employment opportunities and a workplace free of discrimination, even though such statements are supposed to be "issued [by leaders] at the beginning of their tenure and disseminated to all employees."
Either these government agencies are woefully ignorant of their responsibilities on the diversity front, which I highly doubt, or they simply don't see it as a priority. They also apparently have concluded that they can get away with this stunning lack of compliance and will not be subjected to particularly harsh sanctions. Maybe not even so much as a slap on the wrist. "There is absolutely no accountability for those agencies who do not wish to comply with the regulations,'' Carol Dawson, president of EEO Guidance, a national consulting and training company based in Jeffersonville, Ind. told
Diversity Inc. "There is nobody doing anything about the percent that is not in compliance; there are no consequences whatsoever."
But imagine if this same scenario played out in the corporate world -- not about diversity policies, but about anything. If about 20% of corporate workers, or roughly 1 out of 5, failed to submit to their bosses required reports, what do you think would happen? I can guarantee you such a failure would not be tolerated. That's what makes this whole thing even more of a shame. These requirements are present for a reason: to help ensure equality and access to employment opportunities within the federal government for all people.
Related:
+Don't Ask, Don't Tell Policy
Struck Down by U.S. District Court
+80% of School Districts Lay Off Teachers:
How You Can Help
To make matters worse, I'll bet that many of these government agencies that can't even be troubled to submit diversity reports to the EEOC are also getting tax-payer money or some funding based on racial quotas and diversity-based hiring practices. It's high time these negligent federal agencies were called on the carpet on this issue and that they submit to the EEOC -- and by extension, to the public -- the information they're legally supposed to reveal.
How else can we ensure fairness in federal hiring?
![]()
Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, an award-winning financial news journalist and former Wall Street Journal reporter for CNBC, has been featured in the Washington Post, USA Today, and the New York Times, as well as magazines ranging from Essence and Redbook to Black Enterprise and Smart Money. Check out her New York Times best seller
'Zero Debt: The Ultimate Guide to Financial Freedom.'
Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments
Lynnette Khalfani-Cox, an award-winning financial news journalist and former Wall Street Journal reporter for CNBC, has been featured in the Washington Post, USA Today, and the New York Times, as well as magazines ranging from Essence and Redbook to Black Enterprise and Smart Money. Check out her New York Times best seller 'Zero Debt: The Ultimate Guide to Financial Freedom.'