The Honorable Jose E. Serrano
United States Congress
Washington, D.C. 20510
Via Facsimile: 202-225-6001 or jserrano@mail.house.gov
Dear Congressman Serrano:
The National Council of EEOC Locals, No. 216, thanks you for asking Chair Cari Dominguez difficult and thoughtful questions regarding the EEOC’s FY ‘05 Budget Request during the agency’s March 25, 2004, CJS Subcommittee Oversight Hearing. Our members share pointed concerns about the EEOC’s $5 million dollar “Workforce Repositioning” request.
Specifically, Union members are concerned about the EEOC’s proposed privatized National Contact Center. Telemarketers with three weeks of training will not be able to distinguish questions which involve basis versus complex issues, such as jurisdiction. As a result, your constituents civil rights will be put in peril. Right now all employees responding to calls are classified as “inherently governmental.” Even if this work should be reviewed for outsourcing, Federal employees should have an opportunity to compete for the work. Instead it appears the agency failed to obtain a waiver from OMB circular A-76 before it published its solicitation.
At EEOC’s September 8, 2003 Public Meeting, Cynthia Pierre, who headed the contact center workgroup stated “We weren't focused on how much money could we save from this process . .” and “it may be for the same amount of dollars.” At the hearing, Chair Dominguez now claims that it would cost $8-12 million dollars to accomplish the task in-house. How could this be, when the work is accomplished in-house now, with no additional budget allocation? For the record, the Subcommittee should request a detailed foundation for this claim.
The Agency’s $5 million repositioning request is also intended to pay for “office relocation costs,” “staffing adjustments,” and “office adjustments.” The Chair’s own hand-selected “Repositioning Workgroup” does not believe that a business case has been made for her plan to reduce field offices in favor of a ten “mega” district office structure. Chair Dominguez needs to provide answers for the record on the details of this plan.
EEOC Commissioner Miller recently stated: "I don't understand how the plan to designate 10 or 11 district offices as 'mega-offices' either strengthens our mission or addresses the agency's funding issue, and I remain unconvinced that redirecting an enormously large amount of EEOC's scarce resources into a centralized call center makes us more efficient or effective.”
Our members hope
that Congress provides a needed increase to the EEOC. However, we request restrictive language that prevents valued
dollars from going to “Workforce Repositioning,” in the form of a privatized
national contact center or a reduction of
field offices.
Sincerely,