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Urbana HRC approves EEO certifications after debate over hiring figures and union reporting
Summary
The Urbana Human Rights Commission approved automatic two-year EEO certifications for two small firms and certified multiple contractors for one- or two-year periods after commissioners questioned Gibbs Technology/GFI Digital's hiring numbers and urged clearer union-hire reporting on certification forms.
The City of Urbana Human Rights Commission on April 21 approved routine EEO certifications for several employers after commissioners questioned some contractors' reported hiring numbers and discussed improving application reporting.
Commissioners approved automatic two-year EEO certifications for Polyhire Strategy Corp and R&R Services of Illinois and then moved to certify a list of additional firms, including Applied Research Associates (Transportation Division), Core Construction, Firecat, Gibbs Technology (doing business as GFI Digital), Seiler Instrument and Manufacturing Company, Stryker Sales, Petry-Kuhn Company (doing business as Petry-Kuhn Company), and Central Illinois Erectors for one- or two-year certification periods. The motion to certify the companies carried on a voice vote.
The certification discussion centered on Gibbs Technology/GFI Digital, whose submitted workforce statistics showed substantial layoffs followed by fewer minority hires on rehire. One commissioner noted the firm's reported numbers—"out of 100 people laid off, 10 minority workers; out of 117 hired, only 12"—and questioned whether a two-year renewal was appropriate given those totals. Staff member Carla responded that the firm's application listed multiple locations and that examining locations separately could explain some disparities in local workforce availability.
Commissioners also flagged a Petry-Kuhn entry in the application that said roughly half of the office staff were women or of Hispanic/Latino origin while the company listed only two office staff overall; that prompted remarks that the claim was not particularly meaningful given the small office headcount. Commissioners asked staff whether veteran hires are tracked; staff said they are not tracked and that information had been volunteered by the firm.
In response to the pattern of union hiring affecting workforce composition, several commissioners proposed adding a single data field to future certification forms asking how many hires came from labor organizations or unions. As one commissioner put it after reading the contractor's statement, "As a union contractor, we continually reach out to the local union business agents to provide minorities when staffing jobs whenever they are available," which commissioners agreed clarified the contractor's intent despite clumsy wording in the application.
The commission approved the certifications by voice vote. The meeting record shows affirmative responses during the roll call votes and the certification vote.
