[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 47, Volume 2]

[Revised as of October 1, 2004]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 47CFR22.321]



[Page 123-125]

 

                       TITLE 47--TELECOMMUNICATION

 

                    CHAPTER I--FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS

                         COMMISSION (CONTINUED)

 

PART 22_PUBLIC MOBILE SERVICES--Table of Contents

 

            Subpart C_Operational and Technical Requirements

 

Sec. 22.321  Equal employment opportunities.



    Public Mobile Services licensees shall afford equal opportunity in 

employment to all qualified persons, and personnel must not be 

discriminated against in employment because of sex, race, color, 

religion, or national origin.

    (a) Equal employment opportunity program. Each licensee 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.

    (1) Under the terms of its program, each licensee shall:

    (i) 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.

    (ii) Inform its employees and recognized employee organizations of 

the positive equal employment opportunity policy and program and enlist 

their cooperation.

    (iii) 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.

    (iv) Conduct a continuing campaign to exclude every form of 

prejudice or discrimination based upon sex, race, color, religion, or 

national origin, from the licensee's personnel policies and practices 

and working conditions.

    (v) Conduct a continuing review of job structure and employment 

practices and adopt positive recruitment, training, job design and other 

measures needed in order to ensure genuine equality of opportunity to 

participate fully in all organizational units, occupations and levels of 

responsibility.

    (2) The program must reasonably address specific concerns through 

policies



[[Page 124]]



and actions as set forth in this paragraph, to the extent that they are 

appropriate in consideration of licensee size, location and other 

factors.

    (i) To assure nondiscrimination in recruiting. (A) Posting notices 

in the licensee's offices informing applicants for employment of their 

equal employment rights and their right to notify the Equal Employment 

Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the Federal Communications Commission 

(FCC), or other appropriate agency. Where a substantial number of 

applicants are Spanish-surnamed Americans, such notice should be posted 

in both 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 EEOC, the FCC or other appropriate agency if they believe 

they have been discriminated against.

    (C) Placing employment advertisements in media which have 

significant circulation among minority groups 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 spokespersons 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 employees of the licensee 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 that have the 

effect of discriminating against minority groups or females.

    (iii) To assure nondiscriminatory placement and promotion. (A) 

Instructing employees of the licensee 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 that 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) Providing opportunity to perform overtime work on a basis that 

does not discriminate against qualified minority groups or female 

employees.

    (b) EEO statement. Each licensee having 16 or more full-time 

employees shall file with the FCC, no later than May 31st following the 

grant of that licensee's first Public Mobile Services authorization, a 

statement describing fully its current equal employment opportunity 

program, 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,



[[Page 125]]



demotion, layoff and termination. Any licensee having 16 or more full-

time employees that changes its existing equal employment opportunity 

program shall file with the FCC, no later than May 31st thereafter, a 

revised statement reflecting the change(s).



    Note to paragraph (b) of Sec. 22.321: Licensees having 16 or more 

full-time employees that were granted their first Public Mobile Services 

authorization prior to January 1, 1995, and do not have a current EEO 

statement on file with the FCC, must file such statement, required by 

paragraph (b) of this section, no later than May 31, 1995.



    (c) Report of complaints filed against licensees. Each licensee, 

regardless of how many employees it has, shall submit an annual report 

to the FCC no later than May 31st of each year indicating whether any 

complaints regarding violations by the licensee or equal employment 

provisions of Federal, State, Territorial, or local law have been filed 

before anybody having competent jurisdiction.

    (1) 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.

    (2) Any licensee who has filed such information with the EEOC may 

file a notification of such filing with the FCC in lieu of a report.

    (d) Complaints of violations of Equal Employment Programs. 

Complaints alleging employment discrimination against a common carrier 

licensee are considered by the FCC in the following manner:

    (1) If a complaint raising an issue of discrimination is received 

against a licensee who is within the jurisdiction of the EEOC, it is 

submitted to that agency. The FCC maintains a liaison with that agency 

that keeps the FCC informed of the disposition of complaints filed 

against common carrier licensees.

    (2) Complaints alleging employment discrimination against a common 

carrier licensee 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 FCC to the respective State agency.

    (3) Complaints alleging employment discrimination against a common 

carrier licensee who does not fall under the jurisdiction of the EEOC or 

an appropriate State law, are accorded appropriate treatment by the FCC.

    (4) The FCC will consult with the EEOC on all matters relating to 

the evaluation and determination of compliance by the common carrier 

licensees with the principles of equal employment as set forth herein.

    (5) Complaints indicating a general pattern of disregard of equal 

employment practices which are received against a licensee that is 

required to file an employment report to the FCC under Sec. 1.815(a) of 

this chapter are investigated by the FCC.

    (e) FCC records. A copy of every annual employment report, equal 

employment opportunity program statement, 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 licensee and the FCC 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 FCC.

    (f) Licensee records. Each licensee required to file annual 

employment reports (pursuant to Sec. 1.815(a) of this chapter), equal 

employment opportunity program statements, and annual reports on 

complaints regarding violations of equal employment provisions of 

Federal, State, Territorial, or local law shall maintain for public 

inspection 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 licensee and the FCC pertaining to the 

reports after they have been filed and all documents incorporated 

therein by reference. The documents must be retained for a period of 2 

years.