OPM Final Rule--Notification and Training V. 71, No. 139 Fed.Reg. 41095-41099 (July 20, 2006)
Text version
PDF version
No FEAR Act Information for
Department of Commerce Employees
New Employee and
Supervisor Training Module
All new employees are required to take this training within 90 days of being hired.
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OPM Final Rule--Reporting and Best Practices V. 71, No. 249
Fed. Reg. 78033-78038
(December 28, 2006)
Text Version
PDF version
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DOC No FEAR Act Notification Published
in the Federal Register
Vol. 71, No. 222
Fed. Reg. 66909-66910
(November 17, 2006)
Text version
PDF version
The Department of Commerce publishes this notice to inform current employees, former employees and applicants for Commerce employment of the rights and protections available to these individuals under Federal antidiscrimination, whistleblower protection and retaliation laws.
Text of No FEAR Act: html (on the GPO website)
Text of No FEAR Act: pdf (on the GPO website)
Interim Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Rule (on the GPO website)
No FEAR Act Data on the EEOC website (includes information on EEOC Hearings and Appeals processing)
Department of Commerce Aggregate No FEAR Act Data: html
Department of Commerce Aggregate No FEAR Act Data: pdf
Bureau of the Census No FEAR Act Data: html
Bureau of the Census No FEAR Act Data: pdf
Bureau of the Census- Decennial No FEAR Act Data: html
Bureau of the Census- Decennial No FEAR Act Data: pdf
International Trade Administration (ITA) No FEAR Act Data: html
International Trade Administration (ITA) No FEAR Act Data: pdf
National Institute of Standards & Technologies (NIST) No FEAR Data: html
National Institute of Standards & Technologies (NIST) No FEAR Data: pdf
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) No FEAR Data: html
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) No FEAR Data: pdf
See the Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) website for postings from PTO related to the No FEAR Act.
The No FEAR Act
On May 15, 2002, President Bush signed legislation called the No FEAR Act (Notification and Federal Anti-Discrimination and Retaliation Act of 2002). This act, which took effect on October 1, 2003, makes Federal agencies individually accountable for violations of anti-discrimination and whistleblower protection laws. Requirements and agency responsibilities under the No FEAR Act include:
- Payment of settlements and judgments.
Agencies that lose or settle discrimination and whistleblower cases
must pay judgments out of their individual budgets. In the past, most
of these settlements and judgments were paid from a government-wide
“judgment fund”. Under the new law, agencies must now reimburse
the fund for court judgments and settlement payments to complainants.
- Employee information and education.
Agencies must give their employees, former employees and applicants
for employment written notification of discrimination and whistleblower
protection laws. This written notification must include posting the
information on the agency’s web site. Agencies are also required
to provide their employees with training regarding the rights and remedies
applicable to them under these laws. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel
(OSC) (www.osc.gov) is responsible for ensuring that agencies meet their
obligations to inform and educate their employees regarding the WPA.
The Office of Special Counsel is an independent federal investigative
and prosecutorial agency whose basic mission is to guard against prohibited
personnel practices in the federal workplace, with a special emphasis
on protecting government whistleblowers.
- Training for managers. Agencies
should ensure that managers have adequate training in the management
of a diverse workforce and in dispute resolution and other essential
communication skills.
- Annual reports to Congress.
Each agency must file an annual report with Congress, the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission, and the Attorney General providing information
about discrimination and whistleblower cases filed against the agency,
including details on how cases were resolved and any disciplinary actions
against agency employees resulting from violations of discrimination
and whistleblower protection laws.
- Posting of EEO complaint data on the Internet. Each Federal agency must post on its public web site summary statistical data relating to equal opportunity complaints filed against the agency. The agency must post data for the current fiscal year on a cumulative basis (year-to-date information), updated quarterly. An agency also must post year-end data for the five previous fiscal years for comparison purposes. In addition, section 302 of the No FEAR Act requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to post government-wide, summary statistical data pertaining to hearings requested under 29 C.F.R. Part 1614 and appeals filed with EEOC. The posting of EEO data on agency public web sites is intended to assist Congress, Federal agencies and the public to assess whether and the extent to which agencies are living up to their equal employment opportunity responsibilities.
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