Sunday, November 1, 2015

Dept. of Human Rights & Ethics: “You Have an Advocate!”

2016 Cook County Budget Hearings:  Dept. of Human Rights & Ethics

Ranjit Hakim is the Director of the Department. The HR Commission is responsible for enforcing the CC Human Rights Ordinance first adopted in 1993. It protects all people [not just CC employees] who live and work in the County from discrimination and harassment in employment, public accommodations, housing, credit transactions, and access to County programs and contracts. 

The Commission shares jurisdiction with the Chicago Commission on Human Relations, IL. Dept. of Human Rights, U.S. Dept. of Housing and Urban Development, and the US EEOC.  It investigates complaints of discrimination and harassment, mediating disputes when possible, and conducts hearings to award compensatory damages and/or other relief.
 
Mr. Hakim also oversees the CC Board of Ethics [5 seats – 2 of which are vacant and two that have expired terms] which enforces the County’s Ethics Ordinance and includes employee violations of the code of conduct and lobbyist registration enforcement. Ethics investigations can be proactive – the Board does not have to wait for a complaint to be filed. It works closely with the County’s Inspector General’s office and also provides advisory opinions.

His third responsibility is to enforce the County’s living wage ordinance which applies to contractors doing business with the County.  The living wage ordinance is set yearly by the Director of Finance.

2015 Accomplishments:

  • Significantly reduced the backlog of cases and by the end of 2015 all filed cases will be concluded within a one year period. Prior to 2013 it was not unusual to be on the docket for 4-5 years.
  • Two dedicated Ethics Investigators and four dedicated Human Rights Investigators are on staff. A new Deputy in charge of Ethics will allow for a better balance of work load and oversight. 
  • Training manuals have been completed for Investigators administrative law judges. 
  • Kept the 2016 Budget 2.2% less than the 2013 Budget. 
  • Forty percent more audits conducted.


Submitted by Diane Edmundson

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