FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE February 2, 1999

CONTACT: Ivonne Cuñarro (202) 606-2402 iccunarr@opm.gov

Minorities and Women Are Advancing to Top Jobs in Federal Workforce

WASHINGTON, D.C. Despite the continued downsizing of the federal government, the representation of minorities and women in higher level positions is improving, according to the U.S. Office of Personnel Managements (OPM) Annual Report to Congress: Federal Equal Opportunity Recruitment Program.

Total federal employment in the Executive Branch, excluding the Postal Service, decreased by 3.3 percent (54,119) from September 30, 1996 to September 30, 1997, but the report shows an increase in the number of well-qualified Blacks, Hispanics, Asian/Pacific Islanders, Native Americans, and women at Senior Pay levels and the upper grades of the General Schedule and related pay plans (GSR) from 1996 to 1997.

The report indicates that despite a shrinking of the federal workforce, we have not only protected the gains in diversity, but improved the representation of qualified minorities in the higher ranks of the federal labor force, OPM Director Janice R. Lachance said.

Although the federal workforce in GSR levels 9-12 has declined by 3.1 percent from 1996 to 1997, minority representation has increased in those levels from 24.8 percent in 1996 to 25.4 percent in 1997. In addition, despite a nominal increase in the total number of permanent employees in GSR 13-15 levels from 1996 to 1997, the number of minorities rose by 2,227, an increase of 4.4 percent compared to the number of minorities in the prior year. Minority representation at these levels increased from 16.2 to 16.8 percent. Likewise, the federal workforce at Senior Pay levels increased by only 2.2 percent from 1996 to 1997, while minority representation rose by 7.6 percent. An earlier OPM report to Congress also indicates the same upward trend in minority representation from 1995 to 1996.

As the human resources agency for the entire federal government, OPM is committed to assisting all agencies and Executive departments in meeting President Clintons challenge of creating a government that looks like America, Lachance said. I commend all federal agencies and Executive departments for the progress we have made in diversity and urge everyone to continue working for more equitable representation for all the people of this nation.

According to the report, the representation of Blacks at Senior Pay levels rose from 6.3 percent in 1996 to 6.5 percent in 1997, and in the GSR 13-15 pay levels, from 8 percent in 1996 to 8.3 percent in 1997.

Hispanic representation also increased at Senior Pay levels, rising from 2.4 percent in 1996 to 2.6 percent in 1997, and in the GSR 13-15 pay levels, from 3.4 percent in 1996 to 3.6 percent in 1997. Likewise, Asian/Pacific Islanders represented 1.7 percent of the Senior Pay level in 1996 and 1.9 percent in 1997, and 3.8 percent of the GSR 13-15 positions in 1996 compared to 4 percent in 1997.

Native Americans represented 0.6 percent of the Senior Pay level in 1996 compared to 0.7 percent in 1997, and their representation in the GSR 13-15 level remained the same at 0.9 percent. In addition the number of women at Senior Pay level increased from 19. 9 percent in 1996 to 20.9 percent in 1997, and in the GSR 13-15 level from 25.4 percent in 1996 to 26.4 percent in 1997.

The report shows also that Hispanics and women are the only groups that are underepresented in the federal workforce. Although Hispanics account for 11 percent of the civilian labor force, they represent only 6.2 percent of the federal workforce. Women represent 46.4 percent of the civilian labor force, but only 42.8 percent of the federal labor force.

In support of a more fully diverse workforce, in 1997 Director Lachance launched a nine-point Hispanic Employment Initiative to encourage Executive departments and federal agencies to recognize the need to improve the representation of Hispanics in the federal government. In addition, in 1998 Lachance issued a 10-point OPM plan that can be used as a model by other agencies to advance the recruitment and development of Hispanics in their own organizations.

To address the issue of the underrepresentation of women, OPM issued, Women in the Federal Government : A Guide to Recruiting and Retaining. The guide offers strategies to improve the representation and career development of women in the federal government.

For more information on the Hispanic Employment Initiative and the Women in the Federal Government : A Guide to Recruiting and Retaining please visit our web site at www.opm.gov. For information on job vacancies in the federal government please access www.usajobs.gov.

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