Reports of the Administrative Offices 



61 



contracting procedures and Si's policy in doing business 

 with SDBs. We participated in OCon's procurement policy 

 committee meetings to ensure that SDB interests were con- 

 sidered in new SI policy initiatives. 



The OEEMA Director and staff members served on im- 

 portant internal and external committees, councils, and 

 advocacy organizations to provide advocacy for, and to pro- 

 mote, rhe Institution's diversity/affirmative employment 

 goals. The OEEMA Director chaired the Council of Admin- 

 istrative Services Directors throughout the fiscal year. In 

 addition, she participated, along with appropriate taff, in a 

 number of Employee Relations Working Group meetings to 

 discuss overlapping EEO issues in OHR, labor relations and 

 OGC, and various attempts to resolve them. The Director 

 and/or the SDBU Program Manager participated in monthly 

 OSDBU (Offices of Small and Disadvantaged Business Uti- 

 lization) Interagency Council meetings. The Small and 

 Disadvantaged Business Utilization (SDBU) Program Man- 

 ager also chaired the OSDBU Directors Interagency 

 Council's SBA Working Group meetings. 



During FY 1999 OEEMA provided advice and assistance 

 to 330 employees and 178 management officials. The follow- 

 ing were leading issues which the Director, OEEMA's cadre 

 of EEO counselors, and qualified mediators worked to resolve 

 over the fiscal year: selection/nonselection, promotion/ 

 nonpromotion, sexual/nonsexual harassment in the work- 

 place, hostile work environment, proposals to suspend/ 

 remove, termination, reprisal/retaliation, performance evalua- 

 tions/ratings, disparate treatment and perceptions thereof, 

 time limits in the EEO process, the status of individual EEO 

 complaints, the status of EEO investigations, the ADR 

 process and procedures, settlement issues and procedures, 

 performance evaluations/ratings, work duties and responsibil- 

 ities, and employee/managerial rights and responsibilities. 



The OEEMA Director attended a meeting on September 

 29, 1999, with OGC officials and the Office of the Under 

 Secretary to discuss new EEOC regulations and their effect 

 on the federal sector. We met with the SI Ombudsman to 

 address issues not covered under Title VII. 



The OEEMA Director and the Precomplaints Program 

 Manager participated in a meeting with SI Archives and 

 OGC personnel on July 26 to discuss when reports of inves- 

 tigation should be destroyed. 



The OEEMA Director and the Precomplaints Program 

 Manager participated in an EEOC briefing on July 2 1 to 

 discuss ways to improve efforts to eliminate and prevent 

 discrimination in the federal workplace and the impact of 

 revised EEOC regulations on the federal sector. 



During FY 1999 OEEMA received 457 telephonic re- 

 quests for assistance/information from employees and 

 managers, and 170 office visirs. At the end of the fourth 

 quarter only 14 requests for counseling were carried over. 



Our counseling and assistance efforts encompassed a wide 

 range of units, including OPP, MSC, SERC, NASA, NZP, 

 NMNH, OMD, Ocon, CFCS, etc., where we focused indi- 

 vidual advice and assistance efforts to resolve issues, 

 including hostile work environment, harassment, health, 

 safety, promotions, and reasonable accomodations. 



OEEMA attended a meeting between members of the 

 Quality of Workplace Review Committee and the National 

 Council of La Raza to seek assistance in publicizing the 

 Smithsonian's co-op initiative to recruit Hispanic applicants. 



Thirty-four formal complaints were filed during FY 1999. 

 Forty-two formal complaints were closed during the fiscal 

 year; 76 complaints were open at the end of the reporting 

 period. Of the 42 closures, there were 15 dismissals, 1 with- 

 drawal, 13 settlements, and 13 final agency decisions 

 (FADs), including those with and without a hearing. Of 

 the 13 FADs, no discrimination was the finding in each. 



Four of the 13 final agency decisions were without hear- 

 ing; 9 of the 13 were with a hearing. The Smithsonian 

 accepted all 9 recommended decisions of the administrative 

 judges. 



At the end of the fiscal year, 3 complaints were pending 

 written acknowledgment of receipt; 16 investigations, 32 

 hearings, and 21 FADs were pending in invenrory. 



Relevant OEEMA staff members participated in a series of 

 Smithsonian alternative dispute resolution program meet- 

 ings over the fiscal year and it was agreed that presentations 

 would be made to each museum/bureau and each Smithson- 

 ian Council. 



OEEMA staff members participated in a meeting on 

 December 1, 1999, to develop a roll-out plan for the alterna- 

 tive dispute resolution process under development by OHR. 



During FY 1999 34 investigations were closed; 19 inves- 

 tigations were closed by one OEEMA staff member. At the 

 end of the fourth quarter, 10 investigations were being con- 

 ducted. Of these, 2 were being conducted by one OEEMA 

 staff member. 



With the assistance of a summer employee, new filing 

 systems and an electronic database for formal complaints 

 were refined. These are ongoing initiatives into the new fis- 

 cal year. 



OEEMA prepared the FY 1999 "Accomplishment Report 

 on Diversiry Acrion Plans" for units with 25 or more em- 

 ployees. The report was provided to the Provost and the 

 Under Secretary and is being used to evaluate SI Directors' 

 equal employment opportunity performance. We assisted 

 EEO officers in OPS, OMPB, NPM, OMD, NMAH, and 

 AAA in the development of their unit diversity action plans. 



We participated in a November 1 2 meeting to evaluate 

 OHR's pilot mandatory training program for new supervi- 

 sors, providing information on the training and suggesting 

 ways to improve its effectiveness. We worked with NMNH 

 to advise and assist in evaluating progress in meeting 

 mandatory requirements for the training as well as for the 

 Ptevention of Sexual Harassment briefing. In addition, we 

 proposed ways to improve attendance at these courses. 



OEEMA met with the Director, Center for Latino Initia- 

 tives, to discuss the hiring, recruitment, and retention of 

 Latino employees. 



The Diversity/Affirmative Employment Program Man- 

 ager served as OEEMA's representative on the planning 

 committee for the SI Secretary's Day of Excellence, in tan- 

 dem with the Executive Director, Office of the Under 

 Secrerary, the Director of OSE, and with staff from OHR and 



