The Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Division directs the Department's EEO policies, products, and services to optimize the effectiveness of the Department's personnel and operations. Our work is focused on examining barriers to equal employment and advancement in order to create an environment that is welcoming to all individuals. The Division is responsible for:
- Adjudicating EEO complaints for all DHS Components; developing and monitoring EEO program policies, plans, and guidance;
- Delivering training, conducting oversight, and administering EEO programs for DHS Headquarters and its 6,970 employees, and
- Preparing and submitting a variety of annual progress reports relating to the Department’s EEO activities.
We strive to ensure that all employees and applicants for employment enjoy equality of opportunity and employment decisions free from unlawful discrimination based on color, national origin, sex, age, physical or mental disability, protected genetic information, or reprisal based on prior EEO protected activity.
EEO's Complaints Management and Adjudication Section leads the processing of the Department's EEO complaints. The Section prepares final actions on all formal EEO complaints filed by DHS employees, former employees, and applicants for employment who allege discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Equal Pay Act of 1963, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008, and Executive Order 13152 prohibiting discrimination on the basis of parental status.
The EEO Management Section provides leadership, guidance, and technical assistance to DHS Components on the Department’s EEO initiatives, consistent with federal laws, regulations, executive orders, and management directives. Specifically, the Section prepares EEO policy guidance for Department personnel, supports special emphasis programs, and conducts workforce trend analysis, including Department-wide workforce data tables to identify anomalies that may be tied to EEO issues.
The Headquarters EEO Office supports all DHS Headquarters employees by enforcing compliance with the EEO laws, regulations, and mandates, guidance to Headquarters management officials and employees on EEO; preventing and addressing unlawful employment discrimination; and ensuring that all Headquarters employees have a working environment that will support them in the fulfillment of the mission to protect the homeland.
By Mail or Phone
Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
2707 Martin Luther King, Jr. Avenue, SE
Mail Stop #0191
Washington, DC 20528-0191
Phone: 202-357-7705
Toll Free: 1-866-644-8360
TTY: 1-866-644-8361
Fax: 202-357-1198