Diversity in the Workforce To: "A - Division Chief and Staff", "B - Branch Chiefs and Offices", "DC - All District Chiefs", "FO - State, District, Subdistrict and other Field Offices", "PO - Project Offices" From: "Catherine L Hill, ACH/Operations, Reston, VA" Cc: "Catherine L Hill, ACH/Operations, Reston, VA" , "Joanne C Taylor, Secretary (Typing), Reston, VA" , "Janet N Arneson, Secretary (Typing), Reston, VA" , "Alice C Dilandro, Secretary (S), Reston, VA" Subject: Diversity in the Workforce Date: Thu, 16 Oct 1997 11:26:07 -0400 Sender: "Alice C Dilandro, Secretary (S), Reston, VA" MEMORANDUM September 23, 1997 To: All USGS Supervisors From: Gordon P. Eaton Director Subject: Diversity in the Workforce I wish to bring to your attention a matter of critical importance to the health and future of the USGS. It is the issue of increasing and sustaining the diversity of our workforce in both the short and long term. Diversity includes,but is not limited to, a person's race, religion, color, gender, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, age, education, geographic origin, and skills. I urge you to recognize and endorse the concept that a diverse workforce brings a broader, richer perspective to all our endeavors. Further, to properly serve the diverse American public we must have a workforce that reflects our society. In order to be successful, all segments of the USGS must make a concerted effort to accept responsibility and to pursue the objectives necessary to achieve a more diverse workforce. Final revisions are being made to the DOI Diversity Strategic Plan and a USGS team has been convened to develop a bureau diversity plan that mirrors the departmental plan. You will soon receive information that communicates these plans and provides guidance. In the meantime, I wish to clarify each supervisor's role in this strategic initiative. Every personnel decision you make should demonstrate your commitment to diversity. In particular, our recruiting and hiring should reflect these values. Each position filled, regardless of whether it is permanent or temporary, full time or part time, has the potential to contribute to our organizational diversity. Even our volunteer force can be a rich asset in identifying diverse candidates to join our organization. An immediate step we can take is to increase the diversity in the pool of applicants from which we make selections. This will require that we seek well-qualified prospective employees (hires) in new and nontraditional methods. Our longstanding methods of locating candidates may no longer connect us to the full range of qualified applicants we seek. I ask that you coordinate any innovative recruiting methods with your servicing personnel office. It is no longer enough to talk about our efforts, instead, we must be able to see our results. I urge you to join together in delivering results by creating an organizational culture which values diversity and which will demonstrate the versatility and vitality of the USGS.