Federal Daily - August 13, 2009

EEOC Considering Alternate Complaint Processing Pilots

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is measuring agencies’ timeliness in processing complaints and may allow agencies to conduct alternate complaint processing pilots in an effort to find faster and better methods, said a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report. The GAO report, released Aug. 12, looked at delays in processing federal equal employment opportunity (EEO) complaints, and examined apparent or perceived lack of fairness and impartiality in complaint processing. In the course of its investigation, GAO sampled a cross-section of EEO practitioners, including individuals from the 16 federal agencies responsible for 88 percent of complaints filed in Fiscal Year 2005. GAO identified multiple factors that negatively affect how complaints currently are processed, including a lack of timeliness and accountability, insufficient resources, and a deficit of knowledge and skills regarding the process. To address some of the shortcomings, EEOC itself is considering allowing agencies to conduct pilot projects to new test ways to process EEO complaints, the report said. GAO cautioned that the projects would have to be highly evaluated or any results they produce would not elicit much confidence. GAO also suggested that EEOC administrative judges be given subpoena power, that Congress increase the EEOC budget so it can hire additional staff, and that agencies improve their dedication to EEO programs. “Equal opportunity in the federal workplace is key to enabling federal agencies to meet the complex needs of our nation,” the report said. “Agencies must make a firm commitment to the principles of equal opportunity and make those principles a fundamental part of agency culture so that all employees can compete on a fair and level playing field.” To see more, go to: www.gao.gov/new.items/d09712.pdf.

:: Back to Top ::

Group Tells Obama Not to Forget Government’s ‘Dusty Corners’

A watchdog group is calling on President Obama not to ignore “the dusty corners of government” as the administration attacks bigger issues. Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) points to a little known federal entity, the U.S. Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission (USIBWC), as an example of a federal agency that is badly in need of oversight. PEER called USIBWC, which oversees flood control and water management in the Southwest, “arguably the most incompetent and abusive in federal service.” PEER said that USIBWC, which oversees boundary and water treaties between the United States and Mexico and operates several international dams and water treatment plants along the border, has largely mismanaged its mission. For example, PEER said, two international storage dams operated by USIBWC have been rated unsafe, and millions of residents on both sides of the border are at high risk of inundation by floods. And in 2008, in Ambos, Mexico, which is across the border from Nogales, Ariz., sustained millions of dollars in damages as a result of a crumbling USIBWC-built flood channel whose needed repairs were not on the agency’s priority list, PEER said. “We can understand the Obama administration being focused on big issues, but it needs to pay some mind to these dusty corners of government because the consequences of neglect can be epic,” said PEER Executive Director Jeff Ruch. “Numerous reports say that this agency is in crying need of oversight – the one thing it is not getting.” To see more, go to: www.peer.org/news/news_id.php?row_id=1228.

:: Back to Top ::