It Just Ain't RIght!!

The Equal Employment & Opportunities Commission, otherwise known as the EEOC, is supposed to be an agency, a Federal Agency nonetheless, that “is responsible for enforcing federal laws that make it illegal to discriminate against a job applicant or an employee because of the person's race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information.” It also is supposed to be responsible for enforcing laws that make it illegal for an employer to discriminate against a person because the person complained about discrimination or filed a charge of discrimination.  So what happens when the EEOC does not do its job!  What happens when the EEOC takes a complaint and then does nothing with it for over TWO YEARS and then comes back and tells you that they could find no evidence of discrimination.  That’s what happened to me and now I am in an uphill battle with a former employer, without an attorney, trying to seek some justice!

Now this is not a case where I went to the EEOC with a complaint and the EEOC promptly told me that I don’t have a case of discrimination or retaliation.  They looked at my charges and then CHANGED the classification of the charges from an individual charge to a “CLASS ACTION”, a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a case to court against a defendant.  This was a case where the EEOC took not one, but two complaints from me, held on to them for over two years without so much as a telephone call, then tells me that the investigator was on “extended leave” and that they would get back to me when another investigator was assigned and then, four months later sends me a letter to tell me that they were dismissing my charges. What is that crap?  Why hold onto two complaints, that you say is a class action, for over two years and then say “we can’t find anything” when the average time, according to the EEOC, “in recent years, it has taken us – on average – six months to investigate a charge.”  There is a BIG difference between 6 months and over 26 months.  What else was going on there!?  Something else was happening, in the background of the EEOC, that caused them to keep the complaints for over two years and then suddenly dismisses them without giving a reason other than the preprinted and rehearsed reasons provided in a form letter. I have a right to know why you kept my complaints open for over two years and then suddenly tell me the investigator is on “extended leave” and then just as suddenly dismiss me and my charges after telling me that another investigator would contact me once they were assigned.

Now, as complaints go, you would THINK that IF it was taking that long to investigate a charge, it was because there was some substance to it and IF you (the EEOC) were doing a proper “INVESTIGATION”, you would at least talk to the person who complained beyond the taking of the complaint.  YOU WOULD THINK that the logs for that case would have something in them beyond the taking of the complaints.  Logs are just that…they are supposed to provide a chronological listing of the actions taken by the investigator in the case…when they send out documents, when they receive answers to complaints, when they contact witnesses, receive statements, etc., etc., etc.  But when those logs don’t say anything then you, and rightfully so, believe that NOTHING was done beyond what it says in the logs!  And when the case paperwork supports that theory of nothing being done, you have to ask yourself, WHAT IS THE EEOC DOING WITH ALL THAT TAX MONEY, BECAUSE THEY SURE AIN’T INVESTIGATING COMPLAINTS???  You also have to ask yourself WHO ARE THEY ENFORCING LAWS FOR, THE EMPLOYER OR THE PEOPLE. 

Now the effect of the failed responsibilities by the EEOC, on me and other complainants could be devastating.  First of all, most people would probably just let it go, saying, “Well the EEOC says there was no discrimination” and while they might not agree with the response from the EEOC, they don’t have the money or resources to pursue it any further through the legal system, their 90 days after receipt of the EEOC Notice of Right to Sue Letter expires, and that is that, they lose any further rights to file suit and seek redress against the employer and the discrimination by the employer continues.  In my case, I did file my complaint in court but the effect of the EEOC saying they investigated the charge and alluding to a proper investigation and result, not supporting my charges, will be a hard battle to fight.  Add to that, my lack of resources (money) to both support myself and an attorney’s family makes the battle even harder and it just ain’t right.

The Truth...Real or Perceived?

How do we assess truthfulness or the truth?  What do we use as a measuring rule to determine if one person or another is being honest and truthful with us?  Is it a matter of numbers…the more people who spout the same thing the more truthful the story?  If two people tell you opposite sides of a story, which one are you more apt to believe?  Is it based on familiarity, closeness, and friendships?  If two people tell you opposite sides of a story and one is black, the other white, is it a matter of race?  Does race determine who we believe in a conflict?  How about position and rank?  Do we tend to believe individuals in higher positions of authority, people who have titles or letters behind their names?  Are they more truthful?

Truth is immutable…it does not change.  It is neither true nor false…it just is.  That might sound ridiculous but its true!  Something that has always existed without change is truth.  A conversation that occurs, a statement that is made, a thing that is done is truth because it can not be changed once it occurs.  That statement, that conversation or that thing which was done cannot be undone and regardless of what is stated or done in the aftermath, it will never change!  It will always be the truth.

The problem here is that we cannot go back and replay those conversations, those deeds, or those statements, like a tape machine or a video recorder each time they must be replayed.  We have to rely on memory and the ability to recall a specific set of circumstances to retell the story.  How we tell the story, who tells the story and who listens to the story will determine the level of “belief” the hearer experiences.  The key word here is “belief”.  What are the “beliefs” of the hearer?  How is the hearer responding internally to what is being said?  What is the hearer’s belief about the person?  Is the person telling the story a friend?  Is the person telling the story black or white, male or female, gay or straight and what are the hearer’s beliefs about the characteristics, attributes or lifestyle of the teller?

Can a prostitute tell the truth about being raped?  Is a police officer always telling the truth?  Do most people believe that a white person will tell the truth more often than a black one?  Do most people believe that a supervisor is “more truthful” than his or her subordinate?  If five people tell the same story about you, is the story true?  Is what they say the “truth” about you?

How do we measure “the truth”?