[Congressional Bills 110th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H. Con. Res. 140 Referred in Senate (RFS)] 1st Session H. CON. RES. 140 _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 25, 2007 Received and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs _______________________________________________________________________ CONCURRENT RESOLUTION Recognizing the low presence of minorities in the financial services industry and minorities and women in upper level positions of management, and expressing the sense of the Congress that active measures should be taken to increase the demographic diversity of the financial services industry. Whereas the financial services industry is vitally important to the United States economy; Whereas in 2005, employment in the financial services industry was about 7 percent of total employment in the United States, with over 10,000,000 employees; Whereas since 1995, the average hourly earnings of non-supervisory workers in financial activities was above the private industry and increased from approximately $13 in 1997 to $18.80 in 2006; Whereas minorities and women face various challenges in obtaining and maintaining positions, especially upper-level positions, within the financial services industry; Whereas minorities and women often cite the lack of mentors and leadership training as barriers to their advancement; Whereas in 2005, about 14.9 percent of the board seats at the Fortune 100 companies were held by minorities, and women comprised about 16.9 percent of Fortune 100 company board seats in 2005; Whereas in the financial services industry, the percentage of black employees has slowly decreased from about 10.5 percent to 9.8 percent between 2000 to 2005; Whereas in 2005, blacks were approximately 9.8 percent of those employed in the financial services industry and about 7.4 percent of financial managers; Whereas from 2000 to 2005, Hispanics have been an increasing percentage of the United States workforce and the financial services industry; Whereas in 2005, Hispanics comprised about 9.7 percent of those employed in the financial services industry, just 6 percent of financial managers, and less than 2 percent of the directors of Fortune 1,000 companies; Whereas in 2004, Asians represented about 5.5 percent of the employees in the financial services industry and about 6.3 percent of all financial managers; Whereas in 2004, the financial services industry ranked third in the percentage of women employed in the workforce behind healthcare and education; Whereas approximately half of financial managers are women and the percentage of women financial managers was approximately 51.7 in 2005; Whereas in a 2001 survey of 2,200 senior and pipeline level women and men representing approximately 60 securities firms, 65 percent of women reported that women have to work harder than men to get the same rewards, and 51 percent of women report that women are paid less than men for doing similar work; Whereas a minority of women (32 percent) and men (43 percent) believe that promotion decisions are made fairly in their firm; Whereas the House-approved Financial Services Regulatory Relief Act of 2005 directed each Federal banking agency to submit biennial reports to Congress on the status of the employment by the agency of women and minorities; Whereas the Government Accountability Office found in its report ``Financial Services Industry: Overall Trends in Management-Level Diversity and Diversity Initiatives, 1993-2003'', issued in June 2006, that overall diversity at the management level in the financial services industry did not change substantially from 1993 to 2004; and Whereas, although the Government Accountability Office acknowledged that financial services firms have initiated programs to increase workforce diversity, the Office found that these initiatives face challenges: Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This resolution may be cited as the ``Financial Services Diversity Initiative''. SEC. 2. FINANCIAL SERVICES DIVERSITY INITIATIVE. (a) Congressional Recognition.--The Congress-- (1) recognizes that minorities and women still face unique challenges entering into and obtaining upper level positions within the financial services industry; (2) encourages financial institutions to partner with organizations which are focused on developing opportunities for minorities and women to place talented young minorities and women in industry internships, summer employment, and full-time positions; (3) encourages financial institutions to partner with inner-city high schools, girls' high schools, and high schools with majority minority populations to establish or enhance financial literacy programs and provide mentoring; (4) encourages financial institutions, including Federal and State financial institution regulatory agencies, to build and retain a diverse staff through initiatives, including-- (A) providing financial support for minorities and women undergraduate and graduate business programs; (B) heavily recruiting at historically Black colleges and universities, Hispanic serving institutions, women's colleges, and colleges that typically serve majority minority populations; (C) sponsoring and recruiting at job fairs in urban communities; and (D) placing job ads in newspapers and magazines oriented toward people of color; (5) encourages financial institutions to appoint more minorities and women as board members; and (6) encourages financial institutions, and public and private pension funds to seek qualified minority and women owned firms as investment managers, underwriters and other business relationships. (b) Sense of the Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress that-- (1) active measures should be taken by employers and educational institutions to increase the demographic diversity of the financial services industry; and (2) diversity within the financial services industry is vitally important not only to promoting innovation and creativity in the industry but to developing a more inclusive workforce for a fair and just economy. Passed the House of Representatives September 24, 2007. Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, Clerk.