Equal Employment Opportunity
DHS Has Opportunities to Better Identify and Address Barriers to EEO in Its Workforce Gao ID: GAO-10-160T October 14, 2009This testimony discusses the Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) efforts to identify and address barriers to equal employment opportunity (EEO) in its workforce. Since its inception in March 2003, DHS has faced a number of challenges, one of which is effectively and strategically managing its large workforce (about 216,000 employees) to respond to current and emerging 21st century issues. The federal government is faced with a workforce that is becoming increasingly eligible for retirement. We have reported that it is important for federal agencies, including DHS, to use available flexibilities to acquire, develop, motivate, and retain talented individuals who reflect all segments of society and our nation's diversity. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC) Management Directive (MD) 715 provides that in order to attract and retain top talent, federal agencies are to identify barriers to EEO in the workplace, execute plans to eliminate barriers, and report annually to EEOC. This testimony is based on our report that we recently issued entitled Equal Employment Opportunity: DHS Has Opportunities to Better Identify and Address Barriers to EEO in Its Workforce. This testimony discusses (1) the extent to which DHS has taken steps, according to its MD-715 reports, to identify barriers to EEO in the workplace; (2) efforts DHS has taken to address identified barriers and what progress has been reported; and (3) how DHS oversees and supports its components in identifying and addressing barriers. For this work, we analyzed DHS's identified barriers and plans to address those barriers obtained from its fiscal year 2007 and 2008 reports. In addition, we reviewed DHS policies, guidance, directives, and diversity plans related to identifying and addressing barriers. We interviewed DHS officials from its Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) and the Office of the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO). We also reviewed MD-715 and EEOC instructions and guidance on MD-715, and interviewed EEOC officials from its Office of Federal Operations. We obtained information from the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Strategic Human Resource Policy Division on the availability of Federal Human Capital Survey (FHCS) data to federal agencies. Our report contains a more detailed discussion of our objectives, scope, and methodology. Our work was performed in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
We found that (1) DHS has not regularly included employee input from available sources to identify potential barriers to EEO; (2) DHS has modified nearly all of its original target completion dates on planned activities to address identified barriers and has not completed any of those planned activities; and (3) DHS uses a variety of means to oversee and support components, including conducting program audits and convening a council of EEO directors from each of the components.
GAO-10-160T, Equal Employment Opportunity: DHS Has Opportunities to Better Identify and Address Barriers to EEO in Its Workforce
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Testimony:
Before the Committee on Homeland Security, House of Representatives:
United States Government Accountability Office:
GAO:
For Release on Delivery:
Expected at 10:00 a.m. EDT:
Wednesday, October 14, 2009:
Equal Employment Opportunity:
DHS Has Opportunities to Better Identify and Address Barriers to EEO in
Its Workforce:
Statement of Yvonne D. Jones:
Director Strategic Issues:
GAO-10-160T:
[End of section]
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:
Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the Department of Homeland
Security's (DHS) efforts to identify and address barriers to equal
employment opportunity (EEO) in its workforce. Since its inception in
March 2003, DHS has faced a number of challenges, one of which is
effectively and strategically managing its large workforce (about
216,000 employees) to respond to current and emerging 21st century
issues.
The federal government is faced with a workforce that is becoming
increasingly eligible for retirement. We have reported that it is
important for federal agencies, including DHS, to use available
flexibilities to acquire, develop, motivate, and retain talented
individuals who reflect all segments of society and our nation's
diversity. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's (EEOC)
Management Directive (MD) 715 provides that in order to attract and
retain top talent, federal agencies are to identify barriers to EEO in
the workplace, execute plans to eliminate barriers, and report annually
to EEOC.
This testimony is based on our report that we recently issued entitled
Equal Employment Opportunity: DHS Has Opportunities to Better Identify
and Address Barriers to EEO in Its Workforce.[Footnote 1] I will
discuss (1) the extent to which DHS has taken steps, according to its
MD-715 reports, to identify barriers to EEO in the workplace; (2)
efforts DHS has taken to address identified barriers and what progress
has been reported; and (3) how DHS oversees and supports its components
in identifying and addressing barriers. For this work, we analyzed
DHS's identified barriers and plans to address those barriers obtained
from its fiscal year 2007 and 2008 reports. In addition, we reviewed
DHS policies, guidance, directives, and diversity plans related to
identifying and addressing barriers. We interviewed DHS officials from
its Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL) and the Office of
the Chief Human Capital Officer (OCHCO). We also reviewed MD-715 and
EEOC instructions and guidance on MD-715, and interviewed EEOC
officials from its Office of Federal Operations. We obtained
information from the Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) Strategic
Human Resource Policy Division on the availability of Federal Human
Capital Survey (FHCS) data to federal agencies. Our report contains a
more detailed discussion of our objectives, scope, and methodology. Our
work was performed in accordance with generally accepted government
auditing standards.
In brief, Mr. Chairman, we found that (1) DHS has not regularly
included employee input from available sources to identify potential
barriers to EEO; (2) DHS has modified nearly all of its original target
completion dates on planned activities to address identified barriers
and has not completed any of those planned activities; and (3) DHS uses
a variety of means to oversee and support components, including
conducting program audits and convening a council of EEO directors from
each of the components. I will cover each one of these in turn.
First, our review of DHS's MD-715 reports showed that DHS has generally
relied on workforce data to identify "triggers," the term EEOC uses for
indicators of potential barriers. More specifically, such workforce
data can provide a very valuable perspective. However, DHS could
provide additional perspectives by regularly including employee input
from available sources. DHS generally relied on workforce data to
identify 13 of 15 triggers, such as promotion and separation rates, as
table 1 shows.
Table 1: Triggers Identified in DHS's 2008 Management Directive 715
Report:
Trigger: 1. Participation rates in the total workforce were below
participation rates in the civilian labor force (CLF)[A];
Groups affected: Total females and White females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 2. Participation rates among officials and managers[B] were
below participation rates in the relevant civilian labor force
(RCLF)[C];
Groups affected: Total females and White females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 3. Participation rates among professionals[B] were below
participation rates in the RCLF;
Groups affected: Total females and White females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 4. Participation rates among service workers[B] were below
participation rates in the RCLF;
Groups affected: Total females and White females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 5. Participation rates among General Schedule (GS) grades GS-
14 and GS-15 and the Senior Executive Service (SES) were below
participation rates in DHS's total GS workforce population;
Groups affected: GS-14: Hispanic males; GS-15: Hispanic males; SES:
Hispanic males, total females, African American females, and African
American males;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 6. Participation rates among cross-cutting, high-profile
occupations[D] were below participation rates in the RCLF;
Groups affected: Total females and White females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 7. Participation rates among new hires by type of
appointment[E] were below participation rates in the CLF;
Groups affected: Total females and White females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 8. Award rates of quality salary increases were below
participation rates in DHS's permanent workforce;
Groups affected: Total males, Hispanic males, White males, African
American males, American Indian/Alaskan Native males, American
Indian/Alaskan Native females, and males identified as two or
more/other races;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 9. Separation rates (voluntary and involuntary) were higher
than participation rates in DHS's permanent workforce;
Groups affected: Voluntary: Total females, White females, African
American males, and African American females; Involuntary: African
American males and total females;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 10. Participation rates (temporary and permanent workers) were
below the "federal high" in DHS's total workforce[F];
Groups affected: DHS employees with targeted disabilities[G];
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 11. Physical barriers to employment;
Groups affected: DHS employees with targeted disabilities;
Source: MD-715 self-assessment checklist (part G) and comments made at
a disability awareness training for managers.
Trigger: 12. Separation rates (total and voluntary) exceeded
participation rates in DHS's permanent workforce;
Groups affected: DHS employees with disabilities and targeted
disabilities;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 13. Promotion rates (competitive and noncompetitive) were
below participation rates in DHS's permanent workforce;
Groups affected: DHS employees with disabilities and targeted
disabilities;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 14. Participation rates were below the "federal high" in DHS's
temporary workforce;
Groups affected: DHS employees with disabilities and targeted
disabilities;
Source: Analysis of workforce data.
Trigger: 15. Increased incidents of workplace harassment,
discrimination, and violence;
Groups affected: Muslims, Arabs, South Asians, and Sikhs;
Source: November 19, 2001, EEOC, Department of Justice and Department
of Labor "Joint Statement Against Employment Discrimination in the
Aftermath of the September 11 Terrorist Attacks".
Source: GAO analysis of DHS's 2007 and 2008 MD-715 reports.
[A] The CLF is defined as those 16 and older (including federal
workers) who are employed or looking for work and are not in the
military or institutionalized.
[B] EEOC uses nine occupational categories for the federal workforce--
officials and managers, professionals, technicians, sales,
administrative support workers, craft workers, operatives, laborers,
and service workers.
[C] EEOC defines the RCLF as the available pool in the CLF for a
specific occupation, including geographic considerations of the
recruitment area.
[D] According to DHS's 2008 MD-715 report, cross-cutting, high-profile
occupations within DHS are mission-critical occupations that reside in
multiple organizational elements or by their very nature are high-
profile occupations, for example, transportation security officers.
[E] Types of appointment include permanent, temporary, and
nonappropriated funds.
[F] EEOC has designated the "federal high" as the benchmark for
comparing an agency's employment of individuals with targeted
disabilities. The federal high is of a federal agency (with 500 or more
permanent employees) that had the highest participation rate of
employees with targeted disabilities during the prior fiscal year. For
2008, the federal high was 2.65 percent.
[G] According to EEOC, to encourage the hiring, placement, and
advancement of selected individuals with disabilities in affirmative
action planning, EEOC has identified nine categories of targeted
disabilities: (1) deafness; (2) blindness; (3) missing extremities; (4)
partial paralysis; (5) complete paralysis; (6) convulsive disorders;
(7) mental retardation; (8) mental illness; and (9) distortion of limb,
spine, or both.
[End of table]
According to EEOC, in addition to workforce data, agencies are to
regularly consult a variety of sources, such as exit interviews,
employee groups, and employee surveys to identify triggers. Involving
employees helps to incorporate insights about operations from a
frontline perspective in determining where potential barriers exist.
DHS does not consider employee input from such sources as employee
groups, exit interviews, and employee surveys in conducting its MD-715
analysis. Data from OPM's governmentwide FHCS and DHS's internal
employee survey by race, gender, or national origin are available, but
DHS does not analyze these data to determine whether employees perceive
certain personnel policies or practices as possible barriers. By not
considering employee input on DHS personnel policies and practices, DHS
is missing opportunities to identify triggers.
Once a trigger is revealed, agencies are to investigate and pinpoint
actual barriers and their causes. In 2007, through its departmentwide
barrier analysis, DHS identified four barriers: (1) overreliance on the
Internet to recruit applicants, (2) overreliance on noncompetitive
hiring authorities, (3) lack of recruitment initiatives that were
directed at Hispanics in several components, and (4) nondiverse
interview panels. In DHS's 2007 and 2008 MD-715 reports, DHS
articulated planned activities to address these barriers. Nearly half
of the planned activities involve collaboration between the civil
rights and human capital offices.
In regards to my second point, our analysis of DHS's 2007 and 2008 MD-
715 reports showed, as indicated in table 2, that DHS has modified
nearly all of its original target completion dates by a range of 12 to
21 months, and has not completed any planned activities.
Table 2: DHS Identified Barriers, Planned Activities, and Target
Completion Dates:
Identified barrier: Overreliance on the Internet to recruit applicants
for cross-cutting, high-profile occupations;
Planned activities[A]:
1. Partner with OCHCO to "Implement an enterprise-wide recruitment
strategy."[B];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): (09/30/2009);
2008 update: No 2008 update was listed for this planned activity.
Planned activities[A]:
2. Partner with OCHCO to "Deploy applicant flow tool to analyze
recruitment and hiring results";
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2009; (09/30/2008);
2008 update: OCHCO indicated that it is working toward a redeployment
of the e-Recruitment System.
Planned activities[A]:
3. Collect and analyze additional data that could more conclusively
demonstrate a link between overreliance on online recruiting media and
equality of opportunity for applicants.[C];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010; (09/30/2009);
2008 update: A lesson learned in fiscal year 2008 was that targeted
recruiting can be done more efficiently over the Internet and that DHS
needs to develop an online methodology in fiscal year 2009 to reach
active candidates looking for jobs and passive (not actively looking)
candidates who have the appropriate skills and education.
Planned activities[A]:
4. Develop a financial grid with information about the employee
group(s) targets for a specific recruitment tactic[D];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010; (03/30/2009);
2008 update: See #3.
Identified barrier: Overreliance on noncompetitive hiring authorities;
Planned activities[A]:
1. Coordinate with OCHCO to ensure that the applicant flow tool has the
capability to capture the additional data identified in #2;
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2009; (09/30/08);
2008 update: OCHCO indicated it is working toward a redeployment of the
e-Recruitment System.
Planned activities[A]:
2. Collect and analyze additional data that would more conclusively
demonstrate a link between overreliance on noncompetitive hiring
authorities and equality of opportunity for applicants[C];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010; (09/30/2009);
2008 update: CRCL will identify any specific follow-on actions required
after the potential barriers are confirmed.
Planned activities[A]:
3. Have the DHS Corporate Recruitment Council target candidates for
components that have low participation rates[E];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010;
2008 update: N/A[F].
Identified barrier: Lack of specific recruitment initiatives directed
to Hispanics in several components;
Planned activities[A]:
1. Partner with OCHCO to "Implement an enterprise-wide recruitment
strategy"[B];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): (09/30/2009);
2008 update: CRCL participated in the DHS Corporate Recruitment
Council, which in fiscal year 2008 targeted five major categories of
candidates to target.
Planned activities[A]:
2. Coordinate with OCHCO to ensure that the applicant flow tool has the
capability to capture the additional data identified under item #3;
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2009; (12/31/2008);
2008 update: OCHCO indicated that it is working towards a redeployment
of the e-Recruitment System.
Planned activities[A]:
3. Collect additional data that could more conclusively demonstrate a
link between problematic/insufficient responses to Executive Order
13171 and equality of opportunity for applicants and employees[C];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010; (09/30/2009);
2008 update: CRCL will identify any specific follow-on actions required
after the potential barriers are confirmed.
Planned activities[A]:
4. Develop departmentwide guidance to address the issue of levels of
education among Hispanics in the pipeline;
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010; (03/31/2009);
2008 update: No 2008 update was listed for this planned activity.
Planned activities[A]:
5. Have the DHS Corporate Recruitment Council target candidates for
components that have underrepresentation[E];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010;
2008 update: N/A[F].
Identified barrier: Nondiverse interview panels;
Planned activities[A]:
1. Collaborate with OCHCO in the development of guidelines that
addresses the diversity/composition of interview panels;
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2009; (09/30/2008);
2008 update: No 2008 update was listed for this planned activity.
Planned activities[A]:
2. Collect additional data to determine the impact of nondiverse
interview panels[C];
Modified target completion date from 2008 MD-715 report and (original
date from 2007 MD-715 report): 12/31/2010; (09/30/2009);
2008 update: CRCL will identify any specific follow-on actions required
after the potential barriers are confirmed.
Source: GAO analysis of DHS's 2007 and 2008 MD-715 reports.
[A] DHS has identified 12 unique planned activities. The planned
activities listed total 14 because 2 planned activities are listed
twice.
[B] This planned activity is listed twice.
[C] In the fiscal year 2008 MD-715 report, DHS specifies the additional
information to obtain.
[D] According to DHS's 2008 MD-715 report, the financial grid will
identify the cost-effectiveness and human capital yield that results
from using a specific recruitment tactic to acquire specific employee
groups. Also, the grid data will produce information about the
investment costs allocated for each recruitment tactic for each
employee group as well as information about the number of contacts made
using a specific approach.
[E] This planned activity is listed twice.
[F] Not applicable. This planned activity was first identified in the
fiscal year 2008 MD-715 report; therefore, it could not have been
modified in the 2008 report.
[End of table]
Although DHS officials reported completing other activities in fiscal
year 2007 and 2008 associated with its EEO program, DHS said that it
modified the dates because of staffing shortages. To ensure that agency
programs are effectively and efficiently implemented, it is important
for agencies to implement internal control activities,[Footnote 2] such
as establishing and tracking implementation goals with timelines.
[Footnote 3] This allows agencies to pinpoint performance shortfalls
and gaps and suggest midcourse corrections. DHS has not developed
project plans with milestones beyond what is included in its MD-715
report and its Human Capital Strategic Plan. These documents include
only the anticipated outcomes and target completion dates, not the
essential activities needed to achieve the outcomes. For example, in
DHS's 2007 and 2008 MD-715 reports, CRCL identified analyzing
recruitment and hiring results using an applicant flow tool as a
planned activity to address the barrier of overreliance on the use of
the Internet to recruit applicants. DHS's Human Capital Strategic Plan
also identified analyzing recruitment and hiring results using an
applicant flow tool as an action to achieve its departmentwide
diversity goal. DHS does not articulate interim steps or milestones
that would help it to achieve this outcome in either document.
Identifying the critical phases of each planned activity necessary to
achieve the intended outcome with interim milestones could help DHS
ensure that its efforts are moving forward and manage any needed
midcourse corrections, while minimizing modification of target dates.
My third and final point is that DHS uses a variety of means to oversee
and support components, including providing written feedback on draft
reports to components that are required to prepare their own MD-715
reports, conducting program audits, and convening a council of EEO
directors from each of the components.[Footnote 4] At DHS, according to
the DHS Acting Officer for CRCL and the Deputy Officer for EEO
Programs, component EEO directors do not report directly to CRCL but to
their respective component heads. While this EEO organizational
structure is similar to other cross-cutting lines of business (LOB),
other cross-cutting LOBs have indirect reporting relationships,
established through management directives, between the component LOB
head and the DHS LOB chief for both daily work and annual evaluation.
In contrast, the Deputy Officer for EEO Programs stated that he relies
on a collaborative relationship with the EEO directors of the
components to carry out his responsibilities. A management directive
interpreting the scope of authority delegated by the Secretary of
Homeland Security to the Officer for CRCL to integrate and manage the
DHS EEO program is awaiting approval.
Conclusions and Recommendations:
Input from employee groups reflects the perspective of the individuals
directly affected by employment policies and procedures and could
provide valuable insight into whether those policies and procedures may
be barriers to EEO. Because CRCL does not regularly include employee
input from available sources, such as the FHCS and DHS's internal
employee survey, it is missing opportunities to identify potential
barriers to EEO. For barriers DHS has already identified, it is
important for DHS to ensure the completion of planned activities
through effective internal control activities, including the
identification of critical schedules and milestones that need to be
completed by a given date. Effective internal controls could help DHS
ensure that its efforts are moving forward, manage any needed midcourse
corrections, and minimize modifications of target completion dates.
Additional staff, which DHS plans to add in 2009, could help DHS
implement effective internal control activities.
We recommend in our report that the Secretary of Homeland Security:
* direct the Officer for CRCL to develop a strategy to regularly
include employee input from such sources as the FHCS and DHS's internal
survey in identifying potential barriers to EEO; and:
* direct the Officer for CRCL and the CHCO to identify essential
activities and establish interim milestones necessary for the
completion of all planned activities to address identified barriers to
EEO.
Agency Comments:
We provided a draft of our report to the Secretary of Homeland Security
for review and comment. In written comments, which are reprinted in the
report, the Director of DHS's Departmental GAO/OIG Liaison Office
agreed with our recommendations.
Mr. Chairman, this concludes my statement. I would be pleased to
respond to any questions you or the other Members of the Committee may
have.
For questions about this testimony, please contact Yvonne D. Jones at
(202) 512-6806 or jonesy@gao.gov. Individuals making key contributions
to this statement include, Belva Martin, Acting Director; Amber
Edwards; Karin Fangman; Melanie H. Papasian; Tamara F. Stenzel; and
Greg Wilmoth. Contact points for our offices of Congressional Relations
and Public Affairs may be found on the last page of this testimony.
[End of section]
Footnotes:
[1] [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-63] (Washington
D.C.: AUG. 31, 2009).
[2] GAO, Standards For Internal Control In The Federal Government,
[hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO/AIMD-00-21.3.1]
(Washington, D.C.: November 1999). We used the criteria in these
standards, issued pursuant to the requirements of the Federal Managers'
Financial Integrity Act Of 1982 (FMFIA), to provide the overall
framework for establishing and maintaining internal control in the
Federal Government. Pub. L. No. 97-255, 96 Stat. 814. Also pursuant To
FMFIA, The Office Of Management and Budget issued Circular No. A-123,
revised December 21, 2004, to provide the specific requirements for
assessing and reporting on internal controls. Internal control
standards and the definition of internal control in Circular No. A-123
are based on the aforementioned GAO standards.
[3] GAO, Results-Oriented Cultures: Implementation Steps To Assist
Mergers And Organizational Transformations, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-03-669] (Washington, D.C.: JULY 2,
2003).
[4] According to MD-715 guidance, components with a certain amount of
autonomy from their parent agencies are to prepare their own MD-715
reports. Components are to submit these reports to their headquarters
for inclusion in the agencywide report and must also file a copy with
EEOC. DHS has eight reporting components that must prepare and submit
their own MD-715 reports. DHS reporting components are the Federal
Emergency Management Agency, Federal Law Enforcement Training Center,
Transportation Security Administration, U.S. Citizenship and
Immigration Services, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Customs and Border
Protection, U.S. Immigration And Customs Enforcement, And U.S. Secret
Service.
[End of section]
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