Reports & Testimonies

Finding affordable, accessible rental housing can be difficult for low-income households that have a family member with a disability. The Department of Housing and Urban Development has rental assistance programs that can help. But a lot of affordable housing is aging and has to be modified to work for these families. We looked at HUD's rental assistance programs, how many households with disabilities they served...

Women remain underrepresented in management roles in the U.S. workforce. Female managers continue to earn less than male managers, but the pay gap varies by industry and demographics. Our analysis of Census data showed that in 2021: 42% of managers were women, but overall women make up 47% of the workforce Female managers were more likely to be younger and more educated, and less likely...

The Department of Education gives grants to schools and organizations to help disadvantaged students—including students with disabilities—prepare for, enroll in, and graduate from college. The Student Support Services program is its only college access program whose target population specifically includes students with disabilities. But Education does not collect complete information about the disability status of the students helped through the program. As a result, it...

The Securities and Exchange Commission oversees financial markets. To do so, it needs to attract and retain a high-quality workforce. We surveyed SEC employees on their views of SEC's personnel management practices. Since 2013, when we first reported on this topic, employees' views on morale and other issues have improved. Employees also have favorable views of SEC's efforts to ensure a diverse and inclusive workforce...

The Securities and Exchange Commission oversees financial markets. To do so, it needs to attract and retain a high-quality workforce. We routinely report on SEC's personnel management practices. For our latest report, we surveyed SEC employees on their views of SEC's personnel management practices related to recruitment, training, staff development, leadership, organizational culture, and more. We surveyed mission-critical employees—931 nonexecutives and 78 senior officers. More...

Can gender discrimination, sexual harassment, and other barriers explain why women make up less than 10% of special operations forces? U.S. Special Operations Command may not have the information needed to fully assess barriers affecting women's careers in the command. For example, the command doesn't have full access to timely, complete data on its assigned personnel, including incidents of discrimination, harassment, and sexual assault. Collaborating...

We have issued several reports since 2017 reviewing the share of women and different racial/ethnic groups in the financial services industry, challenges associated with recruiting and retaining diverse staff, and practices to expand opportunities. We testified about these reports and how the financial services industry is addressing challenges and expanding opportunities. For instance firms are: assessing data on the diversity of their employees conducting targeted...

Air travel for people with disabilities can be very challenging. We testified about these challenges and actions that airports, airlines, and the Department of Transportation are taking to address them. For example, some airports have smartphone applications to help people with low vision navigate through terminals. Also, some airlines have developed guidance for passengers and training for airline staff to better support those traveling with...

People who believe they've experienced employment discrimination can inquire with the EEOC about filing charges. After EEOC officials interview them, charges can be filed. EEOC received over 145,000 inquiries and 60,000 discrimination charges in FY2021—underscoring the importance of EEOC efficiently managing its inventory of open charges. But, EEOC doesn't monitor how long it takes from when a person files an inquiry to when EEOC officials...

Nearly all public school districts require students to adhere to dress codes and often cite safety as the reason. But there are concerns about inequity in dress code rules and enforcement. For example, school dress codes more frequently restrict items typically worn by girls. And rules about hair and head coverings can disproportionately impact Black students and those of certain religions and cultures. Schools that...

A report, based on a 2019 survey, estimated that 29% of FEMA employees experienced workplace discrimination or harassment in the prior year. FEMA has been taking action to address this. FEMA's efforts incorporated many but not all of the practices recommended by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. For example, FEMA provides annual mandatory anti-harassment training to employees, but the training doesn't fully explain how to...

To see the version of this page in English, see GAO-22-104669. También, la transcripción del episodio de podcast relacionado incluye versiones en inglés y español. A pesar de que muchas empresas de medios de comunicación ahora reconocen la importancia de la diversidad en pantalla e impresa, los trabajadores hispanos están infrarrepresentados en la fuerza laboral de los medios de comunicación de 2010 a 2019. La...

Para la versión de esta página en español, ver a GAO-22-105886. También, la transcripción del episodio de podcast relacionado incluye versiones en inglés y español. While many media companies now recognize the importance of diversity on screen and in print, Hispanic workers were underrepresented in the media workforce from 2010-19. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the Federal Communications Commission share responsibility for protecting media...

Military service academies play a key role in shaping leaders for a diverse military. Students can file equal opportunity complaints when issues of discrimination and harassment arise, but incidents not submitted through the complaint processing system aren't always fully captured. In addition, the academies administer a survey to collect information on the organizational climate, but the results do not always provide complete and reliable information...

We testified that VA has implemented 2 of the 7 recommendations from our June 2020 sexual harassment report, but significant issues still prevent the agency from effectively protecting its employees. Without additional action, VA will likely continue to be among agencies with a high percentage of employees reporting being harassed. For example, VA continues to have the person who oversees personnel functions (e.g., hiring, promotions)...

The CDC reported falls were the leading cause of death from unintentional injury among older adults in 2020. Nine federal programs specifically aim to help prevent falls or improve accessibility for older adults or adults with disabilities. They do so by providing home safety assessments, ramps, exercise programs, and more. But the programs need to share more information with one another. We also found that...

State and the U.S. Agency for International Development have committed to advancing diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility at home and abroad. This statement for the record summarizes our findings on such efforts. State implemented our prior recommendation by taking steps to identify barriers to diversity in its workforce. But, State's methods for doing so may leave some barriers unaddressed—so we recommended improving them. State and...

Facing longstanding diversity issues, the State Department has expressed a commitment to building an inclusive workforce that reflects the diversity of the U.S. State has taken steps to address many leading practices for managing diversity and inclusion, such as appointing a Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer. The agency also created a strategic plan outlining its workplace diversity and inclusion goals and actions. However, State doesn't...