Solidarity with BERG — Point of Action #2: Track and Report Workforce-Diversity Data

To the BERG: Our union sees, recognizes and values the incredible leadership and perseverance of our Black colleagues at OHSU. We stand in solidarity with the BERG. AFSCME Local 328 has been reflecting as a union, and we recognize our ability to do much better.

As stated in our December 2020 letter to the OHSU Black Employee Resource Group, AFSCME Local 328 has committed to stand and bear witness to the BERG’s letter sent  to OHSU leadership and the board of directors on August 31, 2020, which called out concerns around OHSU’s racist practices, particularly those impacting Black employees. This month we address the first of the BERG’s 14 Points of Action, which is to:

Track and publicly report workforce-diversity data — broken down by aggregate race, including non-Black — on an annual basis, to create accountability for stakeholders, members and OHSU.

In its response to the BERG’s letter, OHSU stated it would invest in two new “senior HR system analyst” positions that would focus on data collection and reporting. If OHSU is truly working toward being an anti-racist institution, then it is important to take the filling of these positions seriously and to keep the OHSU community abreast of the status of these positions.

Have these two positions been filled? If so, who are the occupants of these positions? Are they Black? Were current Black employees at OHSU tapped (or even considered) to fill these roles? One may wonder why these questions are being posed. The reason is because Black employees at OHSU have been consistently overlooked and passed up when it comes to opportunities for advancement and promotions.

Given the culture within HR, is it reasonable to also question the reporting structure for these two positions? If these two individuals are to report within HR, as indicated by the job titles, we must ask what OHSU is doing to change the culture within HR. There is, after all, a history of HR mistreating and violating the trust of OHSU’s Black employees.

Additionally, OHSU’s response to the BERG’s 14 Points of Action acknowledged that a data-tracking system is a critically important first step to identify disparities. Is this system in development? Are the two new HR system analysts responsible for this system? If so, are they co-developing the process with the BERG and OHSU’s BIPOC employees, to ensure that their concerns are central to this process? It is critical that OHSU’s efforts to become an anti-racist institution be rooted in the experiences and recommendations of Black employees; this can occur independently and simultaneously with the hiring process.

Lastly, OHSU’s response to BERG referenced the OHSU Fact Book as containing general demographic information, but this information is not disaggregated in a way that is helpful or informative for those aiming to analyze the issues and root causes of inequities facing Black employees at OHSU. The status of the online dashboard mentioned in OHSU’s response should be shared with OHSU members. When can we expect to see this dashboard? Will it include specific data in the areas of concern to the BERG, such as the hiring and promotion of Black employees?

AFSCME Local 328 continues to hold the entire OHSU community accountable (including but not limited to members of our bargaining unit, OHSU leadership, students and researchers) to do their part — individually and collectively — in remaking OHSU into an anti-racist institution. In order for this to happen, we must all be accountable and demonstrate transparency. As such, we stand with the BERG and their call for OHSU to track and publicly report workforce-diversity data — broken down by aggregate race, including non-Black — on an annual basis.