NATIONAL COUNCIL OF EEOC L0CALS No 216, AFGE, AFL-CIO

Office of the President

c/o Denver District Office, EEOC

303 East 17^th Avenue, Suite 510, Denver, Colorado 80203

Tele: (303) 866-1337�� Fax: (303) 966-1900

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ������������������������������������������ ����������� ����������������������������������������������� ����������� Contact: Gabrielle Martin

December 14, 2005 ���������������������������������������������������������������������������������� ����������������������������������� ����������� (303) 725-9079

EEOC RUSHES ANOTHER VOTE ON ITS CONTROVERSIAL PLAN

TO SHRINK THE CIVIL RIGHTS AGENCY

Despite the outrage the EEOC caused earlier this year for rushing a vote through on its controversial restructuring plan, the agency is repeating the same mistake.� With barely a week�s notice the EEOC has scheduled a meeting to vote on a modification to its restructuring plan.� The change will affect the boundaries of the soon to be demoted Baltimore District Office.� Under the plan, one third of EEOC�s District Offices will be downsized.

The EEOC has yet to receive required Congressional approval to actually implement its plan.� According to Gabrielle Martin, President of the National Council of EEOC Locals, No., 216, �This plan requires a complete overhaul.� Tinkering with Baltimore�s boundaries does nothing to increase frontline staffing or address other customer service needs.� It is simply not enough.�

Martin advocates for greater changes to the plan, �By calling this vote, Chair Dominguez has shown that this plan can be changed.� So now, let�s use this opportunity to make some real improvements: fix all the gerrymandered boundary changes; don�t cut the number of regional litigation offices; downsize the layers of management, rather than downsizing offices; and hire or redeploy more frontline staff.�

Substantive improvements cannot be accomplished in a week.� However, Martin predicts, �The public, the civil rights organizations, and Congress would rather the EEOC get it right, then get a bad plan right now.�

Martin also questions the timing of the meeting, �The EEOC has forgotten that it should answer to the people.� It would not be in this position if it had included the public, in creating a plan that made sense.� Scheduling a last minute meeting during the heart of the Holiday season is another way to cut out the public from this process.�

A December vote also means that EEOC�s newest Commissioner, Christine Griffin, will be shut out.� Griffin arrives at the EEOC in January to fill the remaining seat of the five members Commission.� �If the EEOC was confident this was a good plan, it wouldn�t be playing games with the vote,� says Martin.� �Make no mistake, the EEOC is voting to downsize civil rights enforcement.� A full Commission should have the opportunity to weigh in on this critical vote.�