EEOC COMMISSIONER TO SERVE AS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF OFFICE OF COMPLIANCE

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner (EEOC) R. Gaull Silberman has been appointed the first Executive Director of the Office of Compliance, an independent office within the legislative branch of the Federal Government. The Office of Compliance was established by the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995 to enforce 11 civil rights and labor laws made applicable to the legislative branch by the Act. Four of those laws are enforced by EEOC in the private and federal sectors: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990; and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Other major laws made applicable to the legislative branch by the Act include: the Fair Labor Standards Act; the Family and Medical Leave Act; and the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

Commissioner Silberman, who will act as chief operating officer, was appointed by the five-member Board of Directors of the Office of Compliance. She brings to the appointment a wealth of experience and dedication to enforcing civil rights laws. She was first appointed to serve as a commissioner at EEOC in late 1984 by President Ronald Reagan, and was reappointed by President George Bush on July 26, 1990. During her years at EEOC she served as Vice Chairman from November 19, 1985 to October 7, 1994.

In her capacity as Vice Chairman and Commissioner, Silberman has played a major role in the development of Commission policies that have enhanced the credibility and effectiveness of the EEOC as a law enforcement agency. Most recently, she served as co-chair along with Commissioner Paul Steven Miller of The Alternative Dispute Resolution Task Force. The Task Force laid the ground work for the use of mediation-based ADR as an integral part of EEOC's charge processing system.

Her work in enforcing civil rights laws included her service on the Anti-Discrimination Task Force created by Congress in the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986. Commissioner Silberman also served as a member of the Administrative Conference of the United States where, along with her work on ADR, she focused attention on reforming the federal equal employment opportunity administrative process.

Commissioner Silberman has held a number of distinguished positions throughout her career. She was an appointee by President Richard Nixon to the National Advisory Council on the Education of Disadvantaged Children, and Chairman of the Board of Widening Horizons, a volunteer organization which worked closely with the District of Columbia Board of Education to promote career planning programs for inner city students.

Commissioner Silberman will assume her new responsibilities upon expiration of her current term at the Commission in July of 1995.