MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
BETWEEN VIRGINIA Human Rights Council
and the
BALTIMORE DISTRICT OFFICE EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
I. Purpose
II. Coverage
III. Filing Charges of Discrimination
IV. Defferal of Title VII, ADA Charges; Referral of ADEA Charges
V. Initial Charge Processing
VI. Division of Initial Charge-Processing Responsibilities
VII. Integration of Enforcement
VIII. Substantial Weight Review Process and Reporting
IX. Privacy Act
X. Compliance Reviews
XI. Exchange of Information
XII. Designated Representatives
XIII. Right to Amend
XIV. Term
The Virginia Human Rights Council Commission and the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Baltimore District Office, in consideration of mutual benefits derived, do hereby agree and covenant to the following:
The purpose of this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is to provide an orderly and efficient procedure for the deferral and processing of charges pursuant to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") has jurisdiction over allegations of employment discrimination occurring throughout the United States where such charges arebased on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, pursuant to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended (42 U.S.C. Section 2000e et seq.) (Title VII); based upon age 40 or older, pursuant to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967, as amended (29 U.S.C. section 621 et seq.); and based upon disability pursuant to Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.section 12101 et seq.). EBOC also enforces the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (29 U.S.C. section 206), which requires that men and women be paid equally for equal work.
The Virginia Human Rights Council has jurisdiction over allegations of conduct that violates any Virginia or federal statute or regulation governing discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, marital status, or disability, pursuant to the Virginia Human Rights Act, Chapter 39, 2.2-3900 et seq. of the Code of Virginia.
In recognition of, and to the extent of the common jurisdiction and goals of the two Agencies and in consideration of the mutual promises and covenants contained herein, the Virginia Council and the EEOC hereby agree to the terms of this Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), which is designed to provide individuals with an efficient procedure for obtaining redress for their grievances under appropriate federal and state laws.
The terms of this Memorandum of Understanding governs the deferral and processing of charges by the Baltimore District Office, the Washington Field Office and the Virginia Council.
III. Filing Charges of Discrimination
A. In order to facilitate the assertion of employment rights, the EEOC and the Virginia Council each designate the other as its agent for the purpose of receiving charges, even if such charge is non-jurisdictional with the receiving Agency. EEOC deems the date of receipt by the Agency to which a charge is initially presented to be the date of the filing of the charge.
B. The Virginia Council shall take all charges alleging a violation of Title VII, ADEA, or the ADA where the Agencies have jurisdiction and dual-file the charges with the EEOC, so lQng as the allegations meet the minimum requirements of those Acts.
IV. Deferral of Title VII, ADA Charges; Referral of ADEA Charges
Except as specifically provided herein, the EEOC will promptly defer to the Virginia Human Rights Council all charges initially filed with the EEOC under Title VII and the ADA and refer all ADEA charges where the alleged discriminatory act took place within the Virginia Council's jurisdiction.
The Agency originally receiving the charge will send to the other Agency a hard copy of the charge and Form 212-A within ten calendar days of receipt to accomplish deferral and referral of charges.
A. The EEOC will use EEOC Form 212-A, Charge Transmittal to send charges to the Virginia Council. The form will be completed in duplicate. The Virginia Council will complete the bottom portion of the form and return it within ten working days of receipt. If other transmittal arrangements are agreed upon, receipt by the Virginia Council must be documented.
B. The Virginia Council must also transmit charges to EEOC using this form. The EEOC will complete the bottom portion of the form and return it to the Virginia Council within ten working days of receipt.
C. Whenever the original of the Form 212-A is sent or returned to the Virginia Council, EEOC will retain a copy in the charge file. The EEOC number and the Virginia Council charge number must be entered on all transmittals between EEOC and the Virginia Council.
Each Agency will also forward all other relevant data obtained at the time of intake, within ten calendar days of receipt.
Each Agency agrees that it will notify both the Charging Party and Respondent of the dual-filed nature of each such charge it receives for initial processing and explain the rights and responsibilities of the parties under the applicable federal, state, or local statutes. EEOC will provide necessary materials and instructions for intake processing and dual filing.
VI. Division of Initial Charge-Processing Responsibilities
The primary responsibility for resolving dual-filed charges between the Virginia Council and the EEOC will be divided.
Those charges that are originally filed with BEOC will be investigated by EEOC. Those charges which are originally filed with the Virginia Council will be investigated by the Virginia Council, subject to the exceptions, waivers, and limitations specified in A and B of this Section.
This division also recognizes that there are county and city FEPAs within the Commonwealth of Virginia with which EEOC'S Washington Field Office has work sharing agreements.
A. EEOC will resolve all Title VII, ADA, and ADEA charges that it originally receives, as well as the following categories of charges. As to these categories of charges, the Virginia Council waives its exclusive right to initially process:
1. All Title VII or ADA charges received by either Agency 240 days or more after the date of violation;
2. Charges containing an EPA claim;
3. All charges against the Virginia Councils or its parent organization where such parent organization exercises direct or indirect control over the charge decision making process;
4. All charges filed by EEOC Commissioners;
5. All directed investigations by EEOC under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the Equal Pay Act;
6. Charges also covered by the Immigration Reform and Control Act;
7. Complaints referred to EEOC by the Department of Justice, Office of Federal Contract Compliance, or Federal fund-granting agencies under 29 CFR section 1640, 1641, and 1691 and class complaints retained by these agencies for action;
8. Any charge where EEOC is a party to a conciliation agreement or a consent decree which, upon mutual consultation and agreement, is relevant to the disposition of the charge. The EEOC will notify the Virginia Council of all conciliation agreements and consent decrees which' have features relevant to the disposition of subsequent charges;
9. Any charge alleging retaliation filing a charge with EEOC or cooperating with EEOC; and, for
10. All charges against Respondents which are designated for initial processing by the EEOC in a supplementary memorandum to this Agreement.
B. The Virginia Council will process charges as follows:
1. When the Virginia Council originally receives a charge that is within the jurisdiction of one of the following county or city FEPA, it shall refer the charge to that FEPA processing: Alexandria Office of Human Rights ("Alexandria FEPA"), Arlington Human Rights Commission ("Arlington FEPA"), Fairfax County Human Rights Commission ("Fairfax FEPA"), and Prince William Human Rights Commission ("Prince William FEPA"). The county or city FEPA shall cross-file the charge with EEOC.
2. When the Virginia Council originally receives an ADEA claim 181 to 300 days after the date of violation, however, and the claim arises within the jurisdiction of the Prince William FEPA, the Virginia Council will retain the charge and not refer it to the Prince William FEPA.
3. The Virginia Council will retain and resolve all other charges that it originally receives and that arise within the jurisdiction of EEOC.
4. The Virginia Council will also process the following charges originally received by the EEOC:
--Any charge alleging retaliation for filing a charge with Virginia Council or cooperating with the Virginia Council;
--Any charge where the Virginia Council is a party to a conciliation agreement or a consent decree which, upon mutual consultation and agreement, is relevant to the disposition of the charge. The Virginia Council will provide the EEOC with an ongoing list of all conciliation agreements and consent decrees which have features relevant to the disposition of subsequent charges;
--All charges which allege more than one bases of discrimination where at least one basis is not covered by the laws administered by EEOC but is covered by Virginia Council statute, or where EEOC is mandated by federal court decision or by internal administrative EEOC policy to dismiss the charge, but the Virginia Council can process that charge; and,
--All charges against Respondents designated for initial processing by the Virginia Council in a supplementary memorandum to this Agreement.
C. Notwithstanding any other provision of the Agreement, the Virginia Council or the EEOC may request to be granted the initial processing of any charge. Such variations shall not be inconsistent with the objectives of this Memorandum of Understanding.
D. Each Agency will on a quarterly basis notify the other of all cases in litigation and will notify each other when a new suit is filed. As charges are received by one Agency against a Respondent on the other Agency's litigation list a copy of the new charge will be sent to the other Agency's litigation unit within ten working days.
E. EEOC will not defer or refer any charge for the Virginia Council to process that is not jurisdictional on its face with both Agencies. If it is apparent that one Agency might have jurisdiction when another does not, then the Charging Party will be referred to the appropriate Agency.
VII. Integration of Enforcement
A. To effectively integrate the enforcement capabilities of EEOC and the Virginia Council, the Virginia Council will notify EEOC when it determines it does not have the resources to take a case to hearing or to pursue litigation after conciliation failure so that the EEOC may determine what further enforcement action it will take.
B. The Virginia Council will comply with reasonable requests to provide information concerning its charge resolution processes and procedures.
C. The Virginia Council will maintain shared records in accordance with EEOC Order 201, Appendix A, Disposition of Records. The EEOC will provide a copy of this order to the Virginia Council.
VIII. Substantial Weight Review Process and Reporting
A. The Baltimore District Office and the Washington Field Office will conduct Substantial Weight Reviews of the charge files for all final actions submitted by the Virginia Council. Substantial weight will be given to final actions deemed supported by acceptable investigations, as defined by EEOC Order 916. The EEOC will not accept final actions which fail to conform 'to the standards as defined by EEOC Order 916.
B. The Virginia Council will provide a summary quarterly report to the Baltimore District Office and the Washington Field Office of all final actions on all charges deferred to the Virginia Council for processing, and all actions taken on any other charges received by the Virginia Council for EEOC. It is agreed that such quarterly reports will be received no later than the 30th day of the first month of the quarter. The Baltimore District Office and the Washington Field Office will, in turn provide a summary quarterly report of the results of the reviews of the Virginia Council's final actions.
C. The Ba1timore District Office, the Washington Field Office and the Virginia Council will determine the most effective reporting method to use to accomplish this requirement.
The Virginia Council agrees to enforce the Privacy Act regarding the collection, creation and maintenance of records which are subject to the Privacy Act Notification Clause and the Privacy Act Clause. The records compiled, created, and maintained are included in EEOC's Privacy Act System EEOC-3, "Charge of Discrimination Case Files" or Privacy Act System EEOC 1, "Age and Equal Pay Discrimination Case Files." The contents and operation of these systems are described in the appendix to EEOC's Privacy Act regulations. The Baltimore District Office agrees to provide the Virginia Council with the applicable Privacy Act provisions for reference to the requirements in this section.
In all cases where the Virginia Council enters into a conciliation agreement, an order after public hearing, or consent order, it shall include in such agreement or order, mechanisms for monitoring and enforcing compliance with the agreement or order in the event that any terms thereof are not implemented.
A. Both the Virginia Council and the EEOC shall make available for inspection and copying to appropriate officials from the other Agency any information which may assist each Agency in carrying out its responsibilities. Such information shall include, but not necessarily be limited to investigative files, conciliation agreements, staffing information, case management printouts, charge processing documentation, and any other material and data as may be related to the processing of dual-filed charges. The Virginia Council agrees to observe the confidentiality provisions of Title VII, ADEA, EPA, and ADA in accordance with the provisions of Section 83 of the Commission's Compliance Manual and the Freedom of Information Act.
B. In order to expedite the resolution of charges, or facilitate the working of this Agreement, either Agency, may request or permit personnel of the other Agency to accompany or to observe its personnel when processing a charge.
XII. Designated Representatives
For purposes of implementing this MOU, the Virginia Council will send all written notices to the State and Local Coordinator in the Baltimore District Office and to the State and Local Coordinator in the Washington Field Office of the EEOC. For the same purposes, the EEOC will send all written notices to Melissa Marrow of the Virginia Council. Either party may change its designated representative at any time by providing the other party with advance written notice.
The terms and provisions of the MOU may be renegotiated at any time by mutual consent of the parties.
This MOU shall operate from March 29, 1994 through September 30, 1995 and shall terminate automatically unless extended by separate written agreement executed by the parties hereto no later than September 30, 1995.
Roxie Raines Kornegay
Director
Virginia Human Rights Council
Issie L. Jenkins
District Director
Baltimore District Office
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Complaints of possible violations of the Act may be filed with:
Human Rights Council
Sandra D. Norman, Director
1220 Bank Street
Jefferson Building, 3rd floor
Richmond, Virginia 23218
(804) 225-2292
The HR Study and the Submit a Complaint form are in .pdf format and require Adobe Acrobat Reader.
To obtain a free copy of the Reader, visit the Adobe website.