C4C

The Coalition For Change, Inc. (C4C) P.O. Box 142 Washington DC 20044

March 9, 2012 The Honorable Eric H.Holder, Jr. Attorney General U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20530 Dear Attorney General: The Coalition For Change, Inc., (C4C) writes to request that the Barack Obama and Eric Holder Justice Department immediately take a more active role to address employment discrimination and retaliation within the federal government. We also ask that you consider the recommendations transmitted herein to foster workforce diversity, program efficiency, and managerial accountability. The C4C is a public interest group established to expose and eradicate employment discrimination in the federal sector. The C4C also serves as an informational support network for past and present Federal employees, African-Americans, injured as a result of workplace discrimination. Notably, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reported that Black/African-Americans continue to lead the race bases in complaint allegations.1 This disturbing finding prompts our advocacy group to share our concerns and recommendations. To begin with, we are concerned that the federal government, our nations largest employer, maintains a culture of unbridled hostility towards African-American applicants and employees that adversely impacts the welfare of our community. Public servants of African descent, who challenge civil rights violations, routinely face retaliation including removal from federal service. Despite this fact, substantiated by EEOC data, the Obama administration fails to take the warranted steps to alleviate the suffering of African-Americans, the group most impacted by race discrimination in the federal workplace. C4C members are also concerned that the Department of Justice (DOJ) routinely defends public officials who engage in unconscionable civil rights violations and/or prohibited personnel practices. DOJs website, asserts that your role as Attorney General is to represent the United States in legal matters generally and gives advice and opinions to the President and to the heads of the executive departments. Given your role, C4C submits to your attention the following recommendations to address our concerns. RECOMMENDATION ONE: DOJs Civil Division should apply merit-based criteria before deciding to represent managers named as Responsible Management Officials (RMOs) in employment discrimination and retaliation cases brought by federal employees. C4C recognizes that the DOJs Civil Division is charged with defending the federal government in diverse legal challenges. We, however, are concerned with the Civil Divisions unmitigated defense of RMOs in employment discrimination and retaliation cases brought by federal employees. It appears that DOJ evaluates a case on the likelihood of winning rather on the managers conduct or the extent of civil rights laws that may have been violated. C4C members have observed that rather than ensuring
1

Tanya Ward Jordan L.O.R., B, A., M.S. Founder

Philip Taylor B.A., M.P.A. President

Willie Berry, B.S. Treasurer Michael Castelle, Sr. Diversity Chair

Milton Hill B.S., M.A., M.P.A. Outreach Chair

Arthuretta Holmes-Martin B.S., M.S. Mental and Spiritual Well-Being Chair

Cecil Paris PMP, B.S. Management and Organization Chair

Paulette Taylor A.A., B.A. Civil Rights Chair

Diane Williams B.A., M.S., J.D. Legislative Research Chair

www.coailtion4change.org C4C@coalition4change.org 1-866-737-9783

EEOC Annual Report on the Federal Workforce Pt1 EEO Complaints Processing FY 2010 Table 7

The Honorable Eric H. Holder March 9, 2012 Page 2

fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans, your department undermines the civil rights of federal employees who bring forth employment discrimination claims. Habitually, DOJ avails all RMOs free and unconditional legal counsel, suppresses witness evidence, ignores RMOs involvement in prohibited personnel practices, and motions the court via summary judgment to dismiss an employees complaint. We find such practices inconsistent with the Civil Divisions role to resolve fairly those claims which have merit. The pending employment discrimination case of Lee vs. Locke (Civil Action No. 11-0358) exemplifies DOJs misplaced focus on winning over preserving the civil rights of the victim of employment discrimination and retaliation. Presently, DOJ defends the actions of two former U.S. Department of Commerce officials, Mr. Fred Fanning and Ms. Jana Brooks in a lawsuit brought by Plaintiff Edgar D. Lee. Mr. Lee, a Gulf War Veteran and an African-American, asserts that Commerce officials took unlawful actions against him, including exposing him to asbestos after he engaged in protected EEO activity. A separate investigation by the agencys Office of Inspector General as well as an investigation by the Office of Special Counsel sustained Plaintiff Lees claims about Mr. Fanning and Ms. Brooks exposing him to unsafe levels of asbestos. Nevertheless, DOJ continues to defend the injurious actions of these RMOs in the underlying civil case filed by Mr. Lee. Similarly, DOJs defense of RMOs in the employment discrimination case of HolmesMartin, v. Sebelius, Civil Action No. 07-2128 exemplified DOJs misplaced focus on winning. In this race discrimination case, DOJ represented the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officials2 despite the apparent violations of merit principles (5 USC 2301). As with the Lee v Locke case, we find such practices of DOJ defending known personnel violations inconsistent with the Civil Divisions role to resolve fairly those claims which have merit. RECOMMENDATION TWO: Mandate through executive order that executive branch agencies comply with Federal Civil Rights laws and that agency officials found guilty of violations be disciplined. Despite the enactment of the Notification and Federal Employee Anti-discrimination and Retaliation Act of 2002 (No FEAR) into protection laws, no mandatory discipline exists for civil rights violations. In many instances, responsible management officials (RMOs) found guilty of discrimination are never held accountable. Take for example the case of Pierre vs. Salazar, EEOC No. 570-2008-00625X. The case involves Craig Littlejohn, a high-ranking official at the U.S. Department of Interiors Office of Solicitor, who moved African-American employees under his supervision out of the headquarters office. Littlejohn replaced African-American employees with non-African-American contractors; referred to African-American subordinates as monkeys and interfered with

Holmes-Martin, v. Sebelius court proceedings disclosed how HHS official Debbie Ridgely and others engaged in favoritism and political influence when they detailed Clarence Randall, a burrowed in Republican who never applied for a federal job into the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU). After detailing Randall (White/male/GS-15) in as Senior Advisor, HHS officials later fired Holmes-Martin (Black/female/GS-14). Prior to her termination, Ms. Holmes-Martin had served as the OSDBU Deputy Director and had received outstanding ratings for supporting HHS business programs. Testimony disclosed Ms. Holmes-Martin had demonstrated exemplary service over her 25 years with the federal government.

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the promotion process of an African-American male. Rather than punish Littlejohn, Interior officials rewarded his actions with an increase in pay. Based on a Freedom of Information Act reply from Interior, dated January 20, 2012, C4C found that Interior officials awarded Littlejohn a pay step increase two weeks after the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled that Littlejohn had violated civil rights laws and merit system principles in the Pierre vs. Salazar case. Interior officials further condoned Littlejohns discriminatory actions by using taxpayer money to appeal the initial EEOC ruling. C4C petitions the President, as Head of the Executive Branch, to mandate via Executive Order, compliance with civil rights laws and to aptly discipline public officials, like Craig Littlejohn, who violate them. As Attorney General, the highest-ranking federal law enforcement official, you should undertake such compliance, which is in keeping with your stated role to seek just punishment for those guilty of unlawful behavior. In closing, we ask that you acknowledge our organizational concerns and recommendations to aid the Barack Obama and Eric Holder Justice Department combat racial employment discrimination in the federal government. The behavior which involves depriving African-Americans and other groups from employment opportunities should not be tolerated by agency officials, supported by Department of Justices Assistant United States Attorneys, or paid for by the American public with tax dollars. Our recommendations that focus on ensuring fair representation and accountability serve the interest of all Americans. For if RMOs discriminate against their employees, then it is likely that they also discriminate in providing services and programs to the public.

Sincerely, | signed | Tanya Ward Jordan, Founder The Coalition For Change, Inc. (C4C)

cc: President Barack Obama