Web Exclusive

A University employee filed an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint with the D.C. Office of Human Rights, the employee confirmed last month.

Erecka Gibson, manager of the University’s Budget Management and Analysis Group, confirmed that she filed a complaint against the Executive Vice President and Treasurer’s office, but did not give any details into the nature of the complaint. Gibson is black.

The U.S. EEOC 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,” according to the EEOC Web site.

All EEOC complaints filed are investigated, and if they are found to have merit, a “right to sue,” document is issued, according to the D.C. Office of Human Rights.

Executive Vice President and Treasurer Lou Katz, who supervises the department Gibson works in, confirmed that a complaint had been filed but declined to offer any details into the nature of the complaint.

“All complaints that are received like that are fully investigated,” Katz said.

Katz added that all EEOC complaints are investigated, whether they are made formally or informally.

“If people complain it’s always investigated,” Katz said.

University President Steven Knapp said there are measures in place at the University to ensure EEOC complaints are addressed.

“We have compliance offices, [and an] external council to investigate these things,” Knapp said. “There are things that constantly come up in that arena. So there is nothing really new in the idea that you have a concern you want to investigate, and you do want to investigate that aggressively.”