Page 43 - Personnel Policy and Procedures Manual

5. EEO issues alleged by organizations, business or companies outside of the Augusta, Georgia
Consolidated Government;

6. EEO issues or concerns alleged by the employees of vendors or contractors of the Augusta,
Georgia Consolidated Government.

7. Issues alleged by persons not employed with the Augusta, Georgia Consolidated
Government.

Section 200.007 EEO Office Access to Information and Data Collection

EEO-related demographic data collection and the retrieval of certain personnel/employee and departmental
files are essential to the organization and the mandate of the Augusta, Georgia EEO Office to provide case
investigations, Federal Government reporting data, agency profiles, and the analysis of departmental and
organizational progress. The EEO Office may request data via e-mail or hardcopy correspondence. Data
requests should be copied to the Administrator. In certain matters, the EEO Office should (at the discretion
of the EEO Office) independently obtain all EEO-related data in relation to the organization directly from
internal departments, vendors, and testing companies when such data contains EEO-related information in
relation to Augusta, Georgia. Therefore, Departments, managers, employees and offices shall allow the
EEO Office to obtain and maintain direct departmental and vendor access to all EEO-related information,
statistics, and testing data including, without limitation, applicant pool and departmental demographic data.
The EEO Office may require segments of information and/or past data. Requested information may not
necessarily be related to certain minority groups or protected classes of individuals; the EEO Office is
authorized to request and receive information pertaining to various groups including non-protected
categories in order to facilitate investigations, inquiries and disparagement comparisons.

Requested information should be released as soon as it is generated by the department or agency, but no less
than five working days after the request is issued by the EEO Office. Request for departmental data relating
to more than two (three or more) employees should be copied to the Administrator. Departmental responses
for data should contain the race and sex of each employee listed. Each department shall establish direct
EEO-data access for the internal EEO Office by issuing initial release forms to vendors or creating direct
access at the request of the EEO Office. Unless otherwise requested by the EEO Office in writing, all data
should be sent to the EEO Office through confidentially-marked e-mail, confidentially-marked and sealed
interagency mail, or confidentially-marked and sealed departmental hand-delivery. No fees or EEO
generation requirements shall be assessed to the EEO Office for the collection of such data or the replication
of requested information.

Section 200.008 Guidelines for Assessing Educational Credentials in EEO Matters

In EEO-related cases where educational credentials are an issue, the Augusta, Georgia EEO Office has
adopted guidelines from the U.S. Government and recognizes degrees from schools that have received
accreditation from an accrediting body which has been approved by the U.S. Department of Education
(USDE) [www.ed.gov], the Council for Higher Education, the American Council on Education (ACE)
[www.acenet.edu], or the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors (ASPA) [www.aspa-
usa.org]. All accrediting agencies—regional, national, and specialized—that are recognized by the USDE
as reliable authorities regarding the quality of the programs and schools they accredit are listed on the USDE
website at: www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html. The central accrediting body for many of the
degree-granting institutions of higher education in Georgia is the Southern Association of Colleges and

All Rights Reserved – As approved by the Commission on 05-07-2019 43 | P a g e