Nondiscrimination and Affirmative Action (taken from the UW APF Handbook of Best Practices):
Laws and practices related to affirmative action continue to evolve through initiatives and court decisions, and these changes have direct implications for faculty hiring. The University of Washington adheres to policies and practices of nondiscrimination that promote equal employment opportunity and are consistent with state and federal laws.
The UW Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action (EOAA) offers this succinct definition for affirmative action: “Affirmative action is a program required of federal contractors [like UW] to ensure equal employment opportunity. It requires a good faith effort to achieve and maintain a workforce in which minorities and women are represented at a level proportionate with their availability in the labor pool from which the employer can reasonably be expected to recruit. Affirmative action also includes good faith efforts towards covered veterans and individuals with disabilities.”
Section 5.D. of Executive Order 31 affirms this commitment as well: “The University seeks affirmatively to recruit qualified minority group members, women, protected veterans, and individuals with disabilities in all levels of employment as part of its commitment as a federal contractor.”
Affirmative action is distinct from nondiscrimination. Affirmative action refers to policies and practices specific to the outreach phase of the appointment process. The specific goal of affirmative action is to enrich applicant pools so that they are inclusive of all groups, including those that have been historically underrepresented, marginalized, or disadvantaged in specific academic disciplines or in higher education as a whole.
What is NOT allowed by law?
– Search committees cannot use markers of identity such as race, ethnicity, or gender as a criterion in assessment, or as the basis for hiring or advancement.
– EO 31 and I-200 prohibit discrimination and preferential treatment based on identity.
– A range of outreach efforts to broaden pools of qualified applicants are required of federal contractors, allowed under EO 31 and I-200, and encouraged by the University.