In January 2010, Carlton Hadden, Director, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC), Office of Federal Operations (OFO), commissioned a working group that was tasked with identifying workplace obstacles that impact African Americans within the federal government.
The working group held multiple discussions over a period of two years that resulted in the EEOC African American Workgroup Report. This report identified seven obstacles and offered seven recommendations concerning, “the most formidable obstacles to equal employment opportunities for African Americans in the federal sector.”
The Report was issued in March of 2013. The intent of the report was not to issue a traditional document that contained finding and conclusions; rather, the intent was to memorialize the obstacles and recommendations identified by the dialogue partners.
EEOC African American Workgroup Report Summary:
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released a major report identifying the following seven obstacles faced by African American’s in the federal workforce:
- Obstacle 1 – Unconscious Biases and Perceptions
- Obstacle 2 - Lack of adequate mentoring and network opportunities for higher level management positions
- Obstacle 3 – Insufficient training and developmental assignments
- Obstacle 4 – Narrow recruitment methods
- Obstacle 5 – Perception of widespread inequality among African Americans in the Federal Workforce hinders their career advancement
- Obstacle 6 – Education requirements create obstacles
- Obstacle 7 – EEO regulations and laws are not adequately followed and ineffectively enforced