As Director of FHFA’s Office of Minority and Women Inclusion (OMWI), I am pleased to issue our 2017 Annual Report to Congress detailing the results of FHFA’s diversity and inclusion initiatives. This is the fourth Report FHFA has issued since I became the Agency’s OMWI Director. The report reflects the hard work of the OMWI team and the entire Agency in meeting our statutory obligations.
FHFA is unique in that it has two statutory responsibilities relating to diversity and inclusion -- under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, FHFA’s OMWI submits an annual report to Congress detailing initiatives and accomplishments undertaken to increase diversity and ensure inclusion throughout the workforce and business activities of the Agency.
At the same time, under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, FHFA also has responsibility to supervise and enforce the diversity and inclusion programs of its regulated entities – Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the 11 Federal Home Loan Banks, and the Office of Finance.
Key takeaways from FHFA’s 2017 OMWI Annual Report to Congress:
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FHFA’s report showed increases in the Agency’s racial, ethnic, and gender diversity since 2013. The data show an increase of 5.11 and 0.41 percentage points, respectively, in FHFA’s total minority and women populations from 2013 through 2017.
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The overall representation of minorities in FHFA’s workforce is higher than the Federal Workforce, Civilian Labor Force, and the Finance and Insurance Labor Force.
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While the number of management level positions at FHFA decreased from 125 in 2013 to 110 in 2017, women managerial representation increased from 36.8 percent to 41.82 percent with a significant increase in the representation of minority women managers over that period, from 12 percent to 20.91 percent.
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FHFA continued to offer leadership development training, which included formal diversity and inclusion training, to cultivate outstanding leadership and a culture of inclusion among executives and supervisors.
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FHFA published a final rule formally establishing the Agency’s Minority and Women Outreach Program, which is designed to ensure the inclusion of minorities and women, and entities owned by minorities and women, in the Agency’s contracting activities.
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The number of contracts awarded to minority- and women-owned businesses increased from 161 in 2016 to 214 in 2017, an 11.26 percentage point increase year-over-year.
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In 2017, the Office of Personnel Management administered a Diversity and Inclusion Climate Survey on behalf of the Agency to gauge employee perceptions about their work environment, equal employment opportunity, support for diversity, and workplace inclusiveness.
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FHFA published a final rule requiring the regulated entities to develop and implement strategic plans to promote diversity and ensure inclusion in all activities and at every level of their respective organizations.
Throughout 2017, FHFA continued to advance its core commitment to promote diversity and ensure a climate of inclusion in its business activities, contracting, employment, and oversight of its regulated entities. During 2018, FHFA OMWI intends to sharpen its focus and continue enhancing its resources and executing its strategies to meet the Agency’s diversity and inclusion mission and requirements.
By: Sharron Levine
Director, FHFA Office of Minority & Women Inclusion