Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission
 | |
| Type | Civil Rights Agency |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Centennial Government Building |
| Location |
|
Commission Chairperson | Patrick Borchers |
Executive Director | Manra Munn |
| Website | https://neoc.nebraska.gov |
The Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission[1] is the state agency that enforces the Nebraska Fair Employment Act of 1965. The commission consists of seven members and an executive director. [2] The commission receives and investigates civil rights complaints that allege unlawful discrimination in housing, employment and public accommodation.
Commissioners
Executive Director
- Manra Munn
Current Commissioners
- Patrick Borchers - Chairperson
- Royce Jeffries - Vice-Chairperson
- Kristin Yates - Commissioner
- Amber Schuppan - Commissioner
- Rita Griess - Commissioner
- John Arnold - Commissioner
- Eric Drumheller - Commissioner
Background
The Nebraska Equal Opportunity Act was created as a response to the Civil Rights Movement. The unicameral legislature sought to implement its own state laws to compliment the recent passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Originally, the law prohibited discrimination in employment. [3] However, in 1967, it was expanded to cover equal pay. [4] In 1969, to cover housing and public accommodation. [5]
![[icon]](/enwiki/wiki/File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small} | This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (July 2020) |
2018–2019 Civil Rights Enforcement Outcomes
Lawsuits
In 1997, the NEOC was sued for wrongfully firing two of its investigators in the case of Shepard et al., v. NEOC. The Plaintiffs won the case but lost on appeal on constitutional grounds (separation of powers). In 1998, the former Executive Director of the NEOC was found to have fathered children with staff at the commission. A legal dispute would later arise in the case of Myers v. NEOC, as the State of Nebraska sought to remove him from the commission. In 1999, two former investigators sued the commission, alleging they were fired in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Despite winning a jury trial, the case (DeBose v. Nebraska, 186 F.3d 1087 (8th Cir. 1999)), lost on appeal, when a Federal Judge ruled that the ADA didn't apply to States. In 2009, the NEOC was sued again in the case of Widtfeldt v. NEOC, for seeking to issue excessive fines on a respondent. In 2017, the NEOC was sued by a complainant for failing to investigate her civil rights charge in the case of Birge v. Nebraska Medicine. In 2020, the NEOC was sued for failing to hire Latinos and taking retribution on a whistle-blower complainant.
In 2020, the NEOC was sued for failing to hire Latinos. According to a filed lawsuit in the District Court of Lancaster County, the Executive Director of the commission was accused not hiring highly qualified latinos as civil rights investigators in 2018. [6] Since that time, the commission has worked to become more inclusive. Between 2018 to 2019, the NEOC ran several ads in the Omaha area with La Nueva Radio, to improve outreach to the Hispanic community.
References
- ^ "Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission Website". State of Nebraska.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "Commissioners of the Nebraska Equal Opportunity Commission". State of Nebraska.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Nebraska Fair Employment Act. "Nebraska Revised Statute 48-1102 et seq". Nebraska Legislature.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Nebraska Equal Pay Act. "Nebraska Revised Statute 48-1221 et seq". Nebraska Legislature.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Nebraska Fair Housing Act. "Nebraska Revised Statute 20-139 et seq". Nebraska Legislature.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Dini v. Munn/NEOC | 20 CV 611