A. 
It is the County of Albany's commitment to provide and assure that equal opportunity is extended to all persons in employment and contracting matters without regard to their race, color, religion, age, natural origin, marital status, sex or disability. Because of this philosophy, the County of Albany's Affirmative Action Plan for Equal Employment Opportunity seeks to reaffirm, strengthen and reinforce its commitment.
B. 
Equal employment opportunity is the operation of a personnel management system which ensures that policies and procedures will provide, to the maximum extent possible, the same placement, training, promotion and salary opportunities to all people. All aspects of the personnel program shall be based solely on individual merit and fitness of applicants and employees.
C. 
This program of affirmative action has been developed with the purpose of assuring equity in the employment of the protected class.
A. 
As we approach the 21st Century, the vision is to ensure continued progress toward a diverse workforce, provide equal rights for all the employees and citizens of Albany County and to eliminate occurrences of discrimination or sexual harassment.
B. 
To effectuate this policy, the updated Affirmative Action Plan conforms to all relevant federal and state laws and regulations. The goal is to provide equal employment opportunity to all persons without regard to race, color, sex, disability or Vietnam-era veteran status.
C. 
In accordance with the policy, the administrators, managers, supervisors and employees will continue to make diligent efforts to assure recruitment activities reach potential job candidates and enterprises; to encourage full utilization of the skills of each employee and to enhance their skills so they can perform at their highest potential and advance in accordance with their abilities; to provide equal access to contractual bids, hiring, training, promotion of minorities, women, Vietnam-era veterans and the disabled.
D. 
The goals outlined in the Affirmative Action Plan can be achieved with the commitment and cooperation of all County employees.
As used in this policy, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
A. 
Definition of protected class. "Protected class" encompasses minorities, women, Vietnam-era veterans, disabled persons.
B. 
Definitions of specific categories for reporting purposes.
DISABLED PERSON
Any person who:
(1) 
Has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities;
(2) 
Has a record of such impairment; or
(3) 
Is regarded as having such an impairment.
MINORITIES
Include Categories B, C, D and E of the following groups:
(1) 
WHITE (NOT OF HISPANIC ORIGIN)All persons having origins in any of the original of peoples of Europe, North Africa or the Middle East.
(2) 
BLACK (NOT OF HISPANIC ORIGIN)All persons having origins in any of the Black racial groups of Africa.
(3) 
HISPANICAll persons of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Dominican, Cuban, Central or South American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.
(4) 
ASIA OR PACIFIC ISLANDERAll persons having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent or the Pacific Islands. This area includes, for example, China, Japan, Korea, the Philippine Islands and Samoa.
(5) 
AMERICAN INDIAN or ALASKAN NATIVEAll persons having origins in any of the original peoples of North America, and who maintain cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community recognition.
VIETNAM-ERA VETERAN
A person who served on active duty for a period of 180 days, any part of which occurred between January 1, 1963, and March 29, 1973, and was discharged and released with other than a dishonorable discharge. A person who served on active duty for a period of less than 180 days, and part of which occurred between January 1, 1963, and March 7, 1975, and was discharged by reason of disability incurred in the line of duty.
WOMEN
Persons of the feminine gender who are not otherwise classified under a protected group.
C. 
Description of job categories for reporting purposes.
LABORERS (UNSKILLED)
Workers in manual occupations which generally require no special training who perform elementary duties that may be learned in a few days and require the application of little or no independent judgment. Includes: garage laborers, car washers and greasers, groundskeepers and gardeners, farm workers, stevedores, wood choppers, laborers performing lifting, digging, mixing, loading and pulling operations, and kindred workers.
OFFICE AND CLERICAL
Includes all clerical-type work regardless of level of difficulty, where the activities are predominantly non-manual, though some manual work not directly involved with altering or transporting the products is included. Includes: bookkeepers, collectors (bills and accounts), messengers and office helpers, office machine operators (including computers), shipping and receiving clerks, stenographers, typists and secretaries, telegraph and telephone operators, legal assistants, and kindred workers.
OFFICIALS AND MANAGERS
Occupations requiring administrative and managerial personnel who set broad policies, exercise overall responsibility of execution of these policies and direct individual departments or special phases of the County's operations. Includes: officials, executives, middle management, managers, department managers, and superintendents, salaried supervisors who are members of management, purchasing agents and buyers, and other officers, farm operators and managers, and kindred workers.
OPERATIVES (SEMISKILLED)
Workers who operate machine or processing equipment or perform other factory-type duties of intermediate skill level which can be mastered in a few weeks and require only limited training. Includes: apprentices (auto mechanics, plumbers, bricklayers, carpenters, electricians, machinists, mechanics, building trades, metalworking trades, printing trades, etc.), operatives, attendants (auto service and parking), blasters, chauffeurs, delivery workers, sewers and stitchers, dryers, furnace workers, heaters, laundry and dry-cleaning operatives, milliners, mine operatives and laborers, motor operators, oilers and greasers (except auto), painters (manufactured articles), photographic process workers, truck and tractor drivers, knitting, looping, taping and weaving machine operators, welders and flame cutters, electrical and electronic equipment assemblers, butchers and meat cutters, inspectors, testers and graders, hand packers and packagers, and kindred workers.
PROFESSIONALS
Occupations requiring either college graduation or experience of such kind and amount as to provide a comparable background. Includes: accountants and auditors, airplane pilots and navigators, architects, artists, chemists, designers, dietitians, editors, engineers, lawyers, librarians, mathematicians, natural scientists, registered professional nurses, personnel and labor relations specialists, physical scientists, physicians, social scientists, teachers, surveyors, and kindred workers.
SERVICE WORKERS
Workers in both protective and nonprotective service occupations. Includes: attendants (hospital and other institutions, professional and personal service, including nurses aides, and orderlies), barbers, charworkers and cleaners, cooks, counter and fountain workers, elevator operators, firefighters and fire protection, guards, door keepers, stewards, janitors, police officers and detectives, porters, waiters and waitresses, amusement and recreation facilities attendants, guides, ushers, public transportation attendants, and kindred workers.
TECHNICIANS
Occupations requiring a combination of basic scientific knowledge and manual skill which can be obtained through two years of post-high-school education, such as is offered in many technical institutes and junior colleges, or through equivalent on-the-job training. Includes: computer programmers, drafters, engineering aides, junior engineers, mathematical aides, licensed, practical or vocational nurses, photographers, radio operators, scientific assistants, technical illustrators, technicians (medical, dental, electronic, physical science), and kindred workers.
The County of Albany's Affirmative Action Plan of Equal Employment Opportunity shall be made available to all individuals upon request.
A. 
Copies of the County of Albany's Affirmative Action Plan shall be made available to all County employees in the individual departments in which they work.
B. 
The Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Policy shall be displayed in all County departments in a conspicuous place and various heavy traffic areas of County buildings.
C. 
Copies of the Affirmative Action Plan shall be distributed to each County Legislator.
D. 
Copies of the Affirmative Action Plan shall be distributed to each union representing Albany County personnel.
E. 
Organizations that deal primarily with minority women and disabled persons shall be made aware of Albany County's commitment to provide equal opportunity to all persons, and a copy of the Statement of Policy shall be provided to those organizations which request such.
F. 
All employment ads and letterhead stationary shall contain an Equal Opportunity Statement.
G. 
Albany County's Affirmative Action Plan Statement shall be included in any Personnel Policy and Procedure and Procedure Handbooks.
H. 
Human resources will hold meetings with department heads and departmental Equal Opportunity Counselors on an as-needed basis or when violations of this policy occur.
I. 
All County of Albany contracts shall include an Equal Opportunity Statement.
J. 
Any federal, state or municipal governmental organizations requesting or requiring information regarding this plan shall be provided such when requested in writing.
A. 
In order for the County of Albany's Affirmative Action Plan for Equal Employment Opportunity to accomplish the purpose of this policy, elected officials, management personnel and appointed boards must actively and continually pursue the goals of this plan.
(1) 
It is the responsibilities of the County Executive and County Legislature for the achievement of equal employment opportunity in the County of Albany.
(2) 
The Affirmative Action Director shall work in cooperation with the Department of Human Resources Commissioner and its divisions of Civil Service, Employee Relations and Personnel Services to facilitate the coordination of all matters pertaining to County employees.
(3) 
Department heads will be responsible for assuring that Albany County's Affirmative Action, Equal Opportunity Policies and Procedures are implemented and adhered to in their departments. The department head shall recommend an appropriate employee in their department to act as departmental equal opportunity liaison.
(4) 
Departmental equal opportunity liaisons shall:
(a) 
Act as their departmental liaison to the Affirmative Action Office.
(b) 
Assure that public posting of all job openings, promotional opportunities and EEO notices are done in a timely manner.
(c) 
Keep their department heads and employees informed and aware of equal opportunity and affirmative action issues.
(d) 
Direct employees to the Affirmative Action Office when a complaint has not been resolved to the satisfaction of the aggrieved, or if the aggrieved wishes to file a formal written complaint.
(e) 
Analyze monthly and quarterly reports regarding new hires; promotions; disciplinary action; terminations; complaints and other counseling activities.
(f) 
Provide, upon occasion, other statistical documentation pertinent to the EEO function.
(5) 
The Commissioner of Human Resources will review and evaluate the staffing and financial resource needs to the Division of Affirmative Action to ensure equal opportunity functions are maintained as part of the annual budget process.
(6) 
Meetings will be held periodically with the Commissioner of Human Resources to discuss the County's Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity progress during the year and to determine if the plan or its goals need to be revised based on current employment data. A representative of the County Executive's Office will be included in this process.
(7) 
Management will be advised if and when problems arise and recommend action to be taken to alleviate those problems.
(8) 
Where there is evidence of significant underutilization or concentration of protected classes, the Director of Affirmative Action will work with the department head to develop a plan of action to address the situation. The County Executive's Office will be kept informed regarding the progress or lack thereof of such efforts.
(9) 
The Department of Human Resources will review, on a continuing basis, the placement of minority, disabled Vietnam-era veterans and female employees to ensure utilization of educational background, skill and capacity for advancement.
(10) 
The County of Albany's equal opportunity activities will include advertising, recruiting, interviewing, testing, employee training, transfer, compensation, promotion, termination, provision of employee benefits, and the maintenance of accessibility to all County facilities on a nondiscriminatory basis.
(11) 
The Department of Human Resources will continually examine its job specifications to eliminate any barriers to advancement on merit, and seek the maximum development of all members of the workforce through training and development.
(12) 
The Director of the Affirmative Action Office has been designated as the Equal Employment Opportunity Administrative Officer and has overall responsibilities for the implementation of the Affirmative Action Program.
B. 
Affirmative action guidance is available to all employees who request it. The County shall not be party to any agreement which violates any equal employment opportunity law or regulations.
[1]
Editor's Note: See Sheet 1, included as an attachment to this chapter.