[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 29, Volume 4]
[Revised as of July 1, 2003]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 29CFR1614.601]

[Page 283-284]
 
                             TITLE 29--LABOR
 
                               COMMISSION
 
PART 1614--FEDERAL SECTOR EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY--Table of Contents
 
               Subpart F--Matters of General Applicability
 
Sec. 1614.601  EEO group statistics.


    (a) Each agency shall establish a system to collect and maintain 
accurate employment information on the race, national origin, sex and 
handicap(s) of its employees.
    (b) Data on race, national origin and sex shall be collected by 
voluntary self-identification. If an employee does not voluntarily 
provide the requested information, the agency shall advise the employee 
of the importance of the data and of the agency's obligation to report 
it. If the employee still refuses to provide the information, the agency 
must make visual identification and inform the employee of the data it 
will be reporting. If an agency believes that information provided by an 
employee is inaccurate, the agency shall advise the employee about the 
solely statistical purpose for which the data is being collected, the 
need for accuracy, the agency's recognition of the sensitivity of the 
information and the existence of procedures to prevent its unauthorized 
disclosure. If, thereafter, the employee declines to change the 
apparently inaccurate self-identification, the agency must accept it.
    (c) The information collected under paragraph (b) of this section 
shall be

[[Page 284]]

disclosed only in the form of gross statistics. An agency shall not 
collect or maintain any information on the race, national origin or sex 
of individual employees except when an automated data processing system 
is used in accordance with standards and requirements prescribed by the 
Commission to insure individual privacy and the separation of that 
information from personnel record.
    (d) Each system is subject to the following controls:
    (1) Only those categories of race and national origin prescribed by 
the Commission may be used;
    (2) Only the specific procedures for the collection and maintenance 
of data that are prescribed or approved by the Commission may be used;
    (3) The Commission shall review the operation of the agency system 
to insure adherence to Commission procedures and requirements. An agency 
may make an exception to the prescribed procedures and requirements only 
with the advance written approval of the Commission.
    (e) The agency may use the data only in studies and analyses which 
contribute affirmatively to achieving the objectives of the equal 
employment opportunity program. An agency shall not establish a quota 
for the employment of persons on the basis of race, color, religion, 
sex, or national origin.
    (f) Data on handicaps shall also be collected by voluntary self-
identification. If an employee does not voluntarily provide the 
requested information, the agency shall advise the employee of the 
importance of the data and of the agency's obligation to report it. If 
an employee who has been appointed pursuant to special appointment 
authority for hiring individuals with handicaps still refuses to provide 
the requested information, the agency must identify the employee's 
handicap based upon the records supporting the appointment. If any other 
employee still refuses to provide the requested information or provides 
information which the agency believes to be inaccurate, the agency 
should report the employee's handicap status as unknown.
    (g) An agency shall report to the Commission on employment by race, 
national origin, sex and handicap in the form and at such times as the 
Commission may require.