§  23.55   Equal employment opportunities.

   (a) General policy. Equal opportunity in employment shall be afforded
   by all common carrier licensees or permittees to all qualified persons,
   and no personnel shall be discriminated against in employment because
   of sex, race, color, religion, or national origin.

   (b) Equal employment opportunity program. Each licensee or permittee
   shall establish, maintain, and carry out, a positive continuing program
   of specific practices designed to assure equal opportunity in every
   aspect of employment policy and practice. Under the terms of its
   program, a licensee or permittee shall:

   (1) Define the responsibility of each level of management to insure a
   positive application and vigorous enforcement of the policy of equal
   opportunity, and establish a procedure to review and control managerial
   and supervisory performance.

   (2) Inform its employees and recognized employee organizations of the
   positive equal employment opportunity policy and program and enlist
   their cooperation.

   (3) Communicate its equal employment opportunity policy and program and
   its employment needs to sources of qualified applicants without regard
   to sex, race, color, religion, or national origin, and solicit their
   recruitment assistance on a continuing basis.

   (4) Conduct a continuing campaign to exclude every form of prejudice or
   discrimination based upon sex, race, color, religion, or national
   origin, from the licensees' or permittees' personnel policies and
   practices and working conditions.

   (5) Conduct a continuing review of job structure and employment
   practices and adopt positive recruitment, training, job design and
   other measures needed in order to insure genuine equality of
   opportunity to participate fully in all organizational units,
   occupations and levels of responsibility.

   (c) Additional information to be furnished to the Commission. (1) Equal
   Employment Programs to be filed by common carrier licensees or
   permittees.

   (i) All licensees or permittees will file a statement of their equal
   employment opportunity program not later than December 17, 1970,
   indicating specific practices to be followed in order to assure equal
   employment opportunity on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, or
   national origin in such aspects of employment practices as regards
   recruitment, selection, training, placement, promotion, pay, working
   conditions, demotion, layoff, and termination.

   ( a ) Any changes or amendments to existing programs should be filed
   with the Commission on April 1 of each year thereafter.

   ( b ) If a licensee or permittee has fewer than 16 full-time employees,
   no such statement need be filed.

   (2) The program should reasonably address itself to such specific areas
   as set forth below, to the extent that they are appropriate in terms of
   licensee size, location, etc.

   (i) To assure nondiscrimination in recruiting. ( a ) Posting notices in
   the licensee's or permittee's offices informing applicants for
   employment of their equal employment rights and their right to notify
   the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Federal Communications
   Commission, or other appropriate agency. Where a substantial number of
   applicants are Spanish-surnamed Americans such notice should be posted
   in Spanish and English.

   ( b ) Placing a notice in bold type on the employment application
   informing prospective employees that discrimination because of sex,
   race, color, religion, or national origin is prohibited and that they
   may notify the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Federal
   Communications Commission or other appropriate agency if they believe
   they have been discriminated against.

   ( c ) Placing employment advertisements in media which have significant
   circulation among minority-group people in the recruiting area.

   ( d ) Recruiting through schools and colleges with significant
   minority-group enrollments.

   ( e ) Maintaining systematic contacts with minority and human relations
   organizations, leaders, and spokesmen to encourage referral of
   qualified minority or female applicants.

   ( f ) Encouraging present employees to refer minority or female
   applicants.

   ( g ) Making known to the appropriate recruitment sources in the
   employer's immediate area that qualified minority members are being
   sought for consideration whenever the licensee hires.

   (ii) To assure nondiscrimination in selection and hiring. ( a )
   Instructing personally those on the staff of the licensee or permittee
   who make hiring decisions that all applicants for all jobs are to be
   considered without discrimination.

   ( b ) Where union agreements exist, cooperating with the union or
   unions in the development of programs to assure qualified minority
   persons or females of equal opportunity for employment, and including
   an effective nondiscrimination clause in new or renegotiated union
   agreements.

   ( c ) Avoiding use of selection techniques or tests which have the
   effect of discriminating against minority groups or females.

   (iii) To assure nondiscriminatory placement and promotion. (a )
   Instructing personally those of the licensee's or permittee's staff who
   make decisions on placement and promotion that minority employees and
   females are to be considered without discrimination, and that job areas
   in which there is little or no minority or female representation should
   be reviewed to determine whether this results from discrimination.

   ( b ) Giving minority groups and female employees equal opportunity for
   positions which lead to higher positions. Inquiring as to the interest
   and skills of all lower-paid employees with respect to any of the
   higher-paid positions, followed by assistance, counseling, and
   effective measures to enable employees with interest and potential to
   qualify themselves for such positions.

   ( c ) Reviewing seniority practices to insure that such practices are
   nondiscriminatory and do not have a discriminatory effect.

   ( d ) Avoiding use of selection techniques or tests, which have the
   effect of discriminating against minority groups or females.

   (iv) To assure nondiscrimination in other areas of employment
   practices. ( a ) Examining rates of pay and fringe benefits for present
   employees with equivalent duties, and adjusting any inequities found.

   ( b ) Proving opportunity to perform overtime work on a basis that does
   not discriminate against qualified minority group or female employees.

   (d) Report of complaints filed against licensees and permittees. (1)
   All licensees or permittees shall submit an annual report to the FCC no
   later than May 31 of each year indicating whether any complaints
   regarding violations by the licensee or permittee of equal employment
   provisions of Federal, State, Territorial, or local law have been filed
   before any body having competent jurisdiction.

   (i) The report should state the parties involved the date filing, the
   courts or agencies before which the matters have been heard, the
   appropriate file number (if any), and the respective disposition or
   current status of any such complaints.

   (ii) Any licensee or permittee who has filed such information with the
   EEOC need not do so with the Commission, if such previous filing is
   indicated.

   (e) Complaints of violations of Equal Employment Programs. (1)
   Complaints alleging employment discrimination against a common carrier
   licensee will be considered by the Commission in the following manner:

   (i) If a complaint raising an issue of discrimination is received
   against a licensee or permittee who is within the jurisdiction of the
   EEOC, it will be submitted to that agency. The Commission will maintain
   a liaison with that agency which will keep the Commission informed of
   the disposition of complaints filed against any of the common carrier
   licensees.

   (ii) Complaints alleging employment discrimination against a common
   carrier licensee of permittee who does not fall under the jurisdiction
   of the EEOC but is covered by appropriate enforceable State law, to
   which penalties apply, may be submitted by the Commission to the
   respective State agency.

   (iii) Complaints alleging employment discrimination against a common
   carrier licensee or permittee who does not fall under the jurisdiction
   of the EEOC or an appropriate State law, will be accorded appropriate
   treatment by the FCC.

   (iv) The Commission will consult with the EEOC on all matters relating
   to the evaluation and determination of compliance by the common carrier
   licensees or permittees with the principles of equal employment as set
   forth herein.

   (2) Complaints indicating a general pattern of disregard of equal
   employment practices which are received against a licensee or permittee
   who is required to file an employment report to the Commission under
   § 1.815(a) of this chapter will be investigated by the Commission.

   (f) Records available to public —(1) Commission records. A copy of
   every annual employment report, equal employment opportunity program,
   and reports on complaints regarding violation of equal employment
   provisions of Federal, State, Territorial, or local law, and copies of
   all exhibits, letters, and other documents filed as part thereof, all
   amendments thereto, all correspondence between the permittee or
   licensee and the Commission pertaining to the reports after they have
   been filed and all documents incorporated therein by reference, are
   open for public inspection at the offices of the Commission.

   (2) Records to be maintained locally for public inspection by licensees
   or permittees —(i) Records to be maintained. Each licensee or permittee
   required to file annual employment reports, equal employment
   opportunity programs, and annual reports on complaints regarding
   violations of equal employment provisions of Federal, State,
   Territorial, or local law shall maintain for public inspection, in the
   same manner and in the same locations as required for the keeping and
   posting of tariffs as set forth in § 61.72 of this chapter, a file
   containing a copy of each such report and copies of all exhibits,
   letters, and other documents filed as part thereto, all correspondence
   between the permittee or licensee and the Commission pertaining to the
   reports after they have been filed and all documents incorporated
   therein by reference.

   (ii) Period of retention. The documents specified in paragraph
   (f)(2)(i) of this section shall be maintained for a period of 2 years.

   [ 35 FR 12894 , Aug. 14, 1970, as amended at  36 FR 3119 , Feb. 18, 1971.
   Redesignated at  38 FR 22481 , Aug. 21, 1973]
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