Employment

Lawmakers Approve “Upward Mobility” Bill, Proposing More Slots for Blacks on State Boards, Commissions

The bill also directs the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) to develop model upward mobility goals to include race, gender, and LGBTQ identity as factors to the extent permissible under state and federal equal protection laws.

Published

2 years ago

September 14, 2021

Isabelle Price

Capitol Building in Washington, D.C. Photo courtesy of Harold Mendoza via Unsplash

Assemblymember Chris Holden’s (D-Pasadena) ‘Upward Mobility Bill’ (AB 105) passed the California State Senate with a 29-to-8 vote on September 9.

The legislation promotes more opportunities for people of color in California’s civil services system and requires diversity on state boards and commissions. The bill now heads to the governor’s desk to either be signed into law or to be vetoed.

“Upward mobility is integral to achieving racial justice, and we should be setting the example,” said Holden. “The existing systems in place at our own state agencies fail to create inclusive workplace environments and hinder qualified individuals to move up within their department simply based on the color of their skin. Today, the Legislature took a bold step to fix the problem.”

Specifically, AB 105 would require the California State Personnel Board (SPB) to establish a process that includes best practices and emphasizes diversity in the announcement, design, and administration of exams for potential state employees.

Additionally, AB 105 calls for state agencies to collect and report demographic data using more nuanced categories of Californians of African descent, similar to the data collected for Californians of Asian descent. This data will be critical in accurately reporting who among Californians of African descent is experiencing barriers to upward mobility.

Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 3121 into law, which was authored by former Assemblymember Dr. Shirley Weber, who is now Secretary of State. That bill established a task force to study and develop reparations proposals for African Americans. AB 105 would give the task force more accurate data to utilize in its deliberations.

CalHR data shows that the majority of non-white civil service personnel are paid a salary in the “$40,000 and below” range. When the salary range increases, the percentage of non-white civil servants working in upper-level or management positions decreases. The opposite is true for white civil servants who dominate in management and upper-level civil service positions.

The Sacramento Bee has published a series of letters written on behalf of Black employees working at state agencies such as the California Air Resources Board (CARB) and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation with detailed accounts of how Black employees are passed up for promotions over white employees. The problem, however, is not limited to upward mobility. In early November, three Black employees at the California Office of Publishing found racial slurs written on cards at their desk.

“We already mandated the private sector to do their part. It’s time for the state to step up and do theirs,” said Holden.

Newsom has until Oct. 10, 2021, to sign the legislation.

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Isabelle Price

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Activism

California NAACP Launches Employee Discrimination Hotline

Rick L. Callender, president of the California/Hawaii Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (CAL/HI NAACP), has announced that the organization is offering free legal advice and consultations to public and private sector employees in California who have been targets of racial harassment and discrimination in the workplace.

Published

2 months ago

July 25, 2023

Oakland Post

The California Department of Human Resources (CalHR) established the Discrimination Complaint Tracking System (DCTS), which enables the collection of data on complaints regarding discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and denial of reasonable accommodation in state agencies, according to its “2020 Annual Report of Discrimination Complaint Activity in California State Civil Service.”

By Antonio Ray Harvey
California Black Media

“It is a legal redress clinic for folks who have contacted our branch and believe they have been discriminated against because of the color of their skin or harassed because of the color of their skins,” Callender told California Black Media (CBM).

“We are providing legal service for our people because sometimes they try to get an attorney to listen to them, but the attorney will tell them they are busy. What we have is two (legal) firms that have contracted with us to allow people to come and get free advice,” he continued.

Local NAACP branches across California will have the authority to determine if a complaint is appropriate for the legal redress consultations after affected employees submit a Legal Redress Complaint Form.

However, the CAL/HI NAACP points out that completing the form does not constitute filing an official complaint with a legal authority.

According to the California Department of Industrial Relations, workplace discrimination complaints are based on race, color, ancestry, religion, age (40 and over), disability, medical condition, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, marital status, military and veteran status, or national origin (including language restrictions).

The 27-page report stated that the five highest statewide categories of complaints in 2020 were Race, Retaliation, Disability, Sexual Harassment, and Sex/Gender.

According to the report, the categories ranked as follows: Sexual Harassment (44%), Race (23%), Sex/Gender (16%), Disability (9%), and Sexual Orientation (7%).

On May 4, California Attorney General Rob Bonta and New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a joint investigation into allegations of employment discrimination and a hostile work environment at the National Football League (NFL).

The NFL has offices in New York and California with more than 1,000 employees. If discrimination and harassment are taking place at these workplaces it should not be tolerated whether the complaint is lodged with the NAACP or the California Department of Justice, Bonta stated.

“California will not tolerate any form of discrimination,” Bonta stated. “We have serious concerns about the NFL’s role in creating an extremely hostile and detrimental work environment. No company is too big or popular to avoid being held responsible for their actions.

California employees have the right to speak to representatives of the California Labor Commissioner’s Office or any other government or law enforcement agency about any issues affecting their working conditions in California.

For those seeking assistance for workplace discrimination and harassment, the NAACP offers the first step in the process of filing a claim that could eventually become a case against the accused violator or violators.

The free, legal redress advice and consultation offered by CAL/HI NAACP is funded through the Stop the Hate (STH) Program. The grant — administered by California Department of Social Services — comprises three components: Legal Redress, Youth Development, and Working with Ethnic Media.

The program awards funding to qualified nonprofit organizations to provide support and services to victims and survivors of hate incidents and hate crimes and their families and facilitate hate incident or hate crime prevention measures.

Funded support includes direct services for victims and survivors of hate incidents and hate crimes and their families, including mental and complementary health services; wellness and community healing; legal services; navigation, case management, and referrals.

“We first received ‘Stop the Hate’ funding for the Legal Redress program in January 2023,” Callender told CBM. “This is a necessary program, and we are looking forward to receiving more funding for legal redress in three more years.”

This California Black Media report was supported in whole or in part by funding provided by the State of California, administered by the California State Library.

Alameda County

Alameda County Social Services Agency will be co-hosting and on-site recruitment event with Lao Family Community Development.

Meet employers who are actively hiring and impress them with your skills. Don’t forget to bring your resume, dress to impress, and come prepared for interviews!

Published

3 months ago

June 26, 2023

Oakland Post

Alameda County Social Services Agency will be co-hosting and on-site recruitment event with Lao Family Community Development.

Thursday, June 29, 2023
1:30 PM – 3:30 PM

Alameda County SSA
2000 San Pablo Avenue, 2nd Floor
Oakland, CA 94612

Meet employers who are actively hiring and impress them with your skills. Don’t forget to bring your resume, dress to impress, and come prepared for interviews!

For questions, please call or email:

Aziz Isah: 510-459-3212, Aisah@LFCD.org
Mark Mithaiwala: 510-265-8397, Mmithaiwala@acgov.org

Bay Area

President Joe Biden Concludes Bay Area Visit

President Joe Biden has concluded his three-day trip to the Bay Area after departing Wednesday morning from San Francisco International Airport on Air Force One. On Monday, Biden visited Palo Alto to announce a $600 million investment toward climate adaptation strategies across the country.

Published

3 months ago

June 25, 2023

Oakland Post

On Tuesday, Biden discussed the future of artificial intelligence technology with Newsom and a collective of tech leaders at the Fairmont San Francisco hotel. The discussion comes as AI tools like ChatGPT emerge into the public sector. The technology is both promising and risky -- Biden noted that while it may boost productivity, AI can also make spotting misinformation harder and put human jobs at risk.

By Olivia Wynkoop
Bay City News

President Joe Biden has concluded his three-day trip to the Bay Area after departing Wednesday morning from San Francisco International Airport on Air Force One.

On Monday, Biden visited Palo Alto to announce a $600 million investment toward climate adaptation strategies across the country.

He announced the investment at Lucy Evans Baylands Nature Interpretive Center and Preserve, a marshland estimated to protect nearly 1,600 homes from flooding and sea level rise. Biden noted the preserve as a “success story” in the efforts to better prepare for climate-induced natural disasters and mitigate carbon pollution.

He also announced an additional $67 million in federal funds for California to build power lines. Gov. Gavin Newsom, who also attended the announcement, said the assistance will support the state’s push for 100 percent clean energy by 2045.

A White House representative said Biden then went on to attend two re-election campaign fundraising events, one hosted in Los Gatos and another hosted in Atherton.

On Tuesday, Biden discussed the future of artificial intelligence technology with Newsom and a collective of tech leaders at the Fairmont San Francisco hotel.

The discussion comes as AI tools like ChatGPT emerge into the public sector. The technology is both promising and risky — Biden noted that while it may boost productivity, AI can also make spotting misinformation harder and put human jobs at risk.

The president said he is committed to implementing safeguards to ensure there are no threats to national security or the economy before these tools become public.

The discussion included input from Dr. Arati Prabhakar, Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Tristan Harris of the Center for Human Technology and Jim Steyer of Common Sense Media, among other Silicon Valley stakeholders.

Later Tuesday, Biden attended two more fundraisers in Marin County and San Francisco before heading back Wednesday morning to Washington, D.C., according to White House officials.

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