201: Equal Employment Opportunity – Affirmative Action

Statement

Georgetown University is an Equal Employment Opportunity Affirmative Action employer.  The University seeks to provide equal opportunity in employment for all persons, and prohibits discrimination in all aspects of employment because of age, citizenship, color, disability, marital status, national origin, race, religion, personal appearance, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation,  gender identity and expression, and genetic information or veteran status or any other basis prohibited by law.  Additionally, the University will use good faith efforts to achieve ethnic and gender diversity throughout the workforce.  The University emphasizes recruitment of women, minority group members, disabled individuals, and Vietnam era veterans.

Philosophy

To achieve its mission, the University strives to develop a community that is appropriately representative of the diversity of society.  This commitment to affirmative action evidences the University’s fundamental tenets and its dedication to an ongoing process of change and renewal.

Procedures

The goal of the University’s hiring policy is to recruit, hire, transfer, promote and make other employment decisions using these guidelines:​

• To consider individuals without discrimination based on  age, citizenship, color, disability, marital status, national origin, race, religion, personal appearance, family responsibilities, matriculation, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status or any other unlawful factor.
• To use good faith efforts to achieve the University’s affirmative action goals for minority persons and women.
• To select the individual who best meets the needs of the selecting department and the University.
• To enhance opportunities for mobility and promotion of qualified candidates who are current University employees.

It is part of the University’s policy to comply with the Americans with Disability Act.  Under this Act a qualified individual with a disability who can perform the essential functions of the position with or without a reasonable accommodation is protected from discrimination due to his or her disability. 

Examples of reasonable accommodations that may be provided if they do not impose an undue hardship on an employer include modifying work schedules; purchasing or modifying equipment (such as Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf); changing a desk lay-out or rearranging office furniture; or reassigning the minor or marginal functions of a job to another employee.  Generally, it is the obligation of the individual with a disability to request a reasonable accommodation from the employer.

Responsibility

All selecting departments should follow the procedures and the spirit of the University’s Equal Opportunity Affirmative Action policy. The Human Resources department assists selecting departments to recruit and hire candidates.

Resources

Contact the appropriate Human Resources department or the Office of Affirmative Action Program if you have questions or if you would like more information about this policy.  Employees who believe they have been discriminated against should contact the Office of Affirmative Action Programs, which maintains a procedure for investigation and resolution of complaints.