Home     News     Services     Online Services     Forms     Departments     Links     Search     Contacts

WORKFORCE DIVERSITY GOALS

The Action Items listed in the Implementation Priorities section (see end of Part One) of the Diversity Implementation Plan outline the goals that the County has established to address diversity and employment disparity, as well as customer service. In addition to these, the following goals have been established to specifically address under-representation of people of color and women indicated in the Tables on the preceding pages. Goals generally should address all minorities as a group. However, where data indicates a particular group is significantly under-represented, a separate goal may be established for that group.

In analyzing the areas in which people of color and women are under-represented, it is striking to note that they are often inadequately represented among applicant pools. Therefore, an area of primary focus in addressing under-representation in all job categories is recruitment. Broad in scope, recruitment involves everything from outreach to communities of color at the grass roots level, establishing programs with local educational institutions, to widening searches across geographic areas.

Another area of focus is to examine ways in which the County can expand programs such as internships, mentoring/apprenticeship, and continuing education and training. This might also include increasing the number of entry-level positions.

To address its under-representation of minorities and women within its workforce, Lane County established the following goals as priorities:

1. In addressing the under-representation of minority men and women as officials and deputies, and non-minority women as officials, the Sheriff’s Office will continue its outreach and active recruitment of qualified individuals within local communities of color and examine other methods of attracting qualified minorities and women, such as expanding its search area. Additionally, it will be beneficial to re-examine its screening procedures and promotional practices.
2. Due to the under-representation of minority men and women as officials and administrators, a broadened and active search and recruitment of qualified individuals in these groups will be made to fill vacancies as they occur. In addition, the County’s continuing education and training programs, and promotional practices will be evaluated.
3. To address the under-representation of minority men and women in technical positions, increased accessibility to additional training and education will be made available to current employees, and active, targeted recruitment of qualified minorities will be conducted as vacancies occur.
4. To address the significant under-representation of women across all groups in the service/maintenance field, recruitment efforts aimed specifically at women of all races will be made.
5. Due to the under-representation of minority men and women in the skilled crafts, para-professional, and office/clerical positions, recruitment will be expanded to specifically target these groups of individuals. Current practices regarding mentorship/apprenticeship programs in skilled crafts will also be evaluated.
6. To address the under-representation of minority men, specifically African American and Asian, in professional positions, recruitment efforts will target these specific groups, and promotional practices leading to these positions will be evaluated.

These goals, together with the County’s comprehensive Diversity Implementation Plan and the strategies outlined in the following section, form the framework of the County’s approach to workforce diversity.