EEOC CHAIRMAN SETS MEETINGS IN CALIFORNIA WITH AGENCY STAFF AND EEO GROUPS

WASHINGTON -- During the week of February 19, 1996, Gilbert F. Casellas, Chairman of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), will make his first visit to southern California since becoming head of the agency on October 3, 1994.

Along with meeting EEOC field staff in the agency's San Diego and Los Angeles offices, he will also meet with representatives from a wide variety of groups interested in equal employment opportunity (EEO) and affirmative action issues. The Chairman's visit will culminate with his keynote address to the Mexican American Bar Association of Los Angeles County at its 36th Annual Installation and Awards Banquet.

Chairman Casellas will begin his visit to San Diego with a breakfast reception for area Latino leaders hosted by the Chicano Federation of San Diego. The Chairman will then visit the San Diego Area Office to discuss the status of implementation of recent reforms made by the Commission designed to streamline the agency's charge processing procedures. Chairman Casellas will present the keynote address on the future of the EEOC and affirmative action at a luncheon hosted by U.S. Representative Bob Filner.

Traveling to Los Angeles on Tuesday evening, the Chairman will meet with a broad range of representatives of entertainment industry employee organizations at a reception at the Writer's Guild. Casellas sought the meeting as an informal factfinding opportunity on the issue of the under-representation of minorities, women, and people with disabilities in all aspects of the entertainment industry.

As part of the Clinton Administration's ongoing effort to strengthen enforcement of illegal immigration laws without weakening the anti-discrimination protections for legal workers, Chairman Casellas will participate in a series of events hosted by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) on Wednesday, February 21. These events will focus on a demonstration of the INS Southern California Employment Verification Pilot Program, which is currently being conducted in Santa Ana. In accordance with his enforcement mandate, Chairman Casellas is responsible for ensuring that work authorization pilots adequately safeguard the equal employment opportunity of all legal workers. As part of the pilot's demonstration, Casellas will visit the facilities of several employers participating in the pilot program. The day will conclude with a meeting with members of several prominent immigrant rights organizations hosted by the National Immigration Law Center in Los Angeles.

At the invitation of U.S. Representative Matthew Martinez, the Chairman will address a breakfast meeting the El Monte Chamber of Commerce on Thursday morning. Thursday evening, Chairman Casellas will be the featured guest at a reception and briefing hosted by the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF).

Thursday and Friday, Casellas will visit the agency's Los Angeles District Office. He will observe firsthand the operation of the district office, which, like EEOC offices throughout California and across the country, is struggling with a high volume of recent and pending employment discrimination charges. The Chairman will also discuss the Los Angeles' offices efforts and plans for education and outreach to the various communities served by the office.

The trip will conclude Saturday, February 24, with the Chairman's keynote address to the Mexican American Bar Association (MABA) of Los Angeles County's 36th Annual Installation and Awards Banquet. MABA, the largest local minority bar association in the country, will hold its award banquet on Saturday evening at the Biltmore Hotel where it will honor Dr. Rodolfo Acuna and Delores Huerta, Vice President of the United Farm Workers (UFW).

EEOC enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act; the Equal Pay Act; sections of the Civil Rights Act of 1991; Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in the private sector and state and local governments; and prohibitions against discrimination affecting individuals with disabilities in the federal government.