* * * * * * COMMUNITY AND GOVERNMENT RELATIONS 4;Y;of

(BULLE:TIxN V\C)0 C~- yI )

FOR CIRCULATION AMONG GENERAL ELECTRIC MANAGERS * * ** **1 c /...,

For the information of General ElectricManagers only and not for republication

No. 643_P r2r.1April 17, 1964

. EQUAL OPPORTUNITY: A Long-Standing,Continuing Commitment in General Electric

INSTiTUIE OF IN!)RELATIONS Li

NOV 2 21

Like most other employers, General Electric managers arereceiving quite a few inquiries and questions about the Com-pany's efforts to assure equal opportunity for all citizens,regardless of race or creed. You have no doubt been answeringsuch questions with information about your own component'sefforts in this field, but the purpose of this BULLETIN is to ac-quaint you with some of the things that have been done andare being done elsewhere in the Company, so that you can pre-sent a broader picture of General Electric's long-continuingefforts to assure equal opportunity for all. We are not lookingar publicity about these activities, which after all have a long

sI_RIAWi tory in General Electric; but you may find the informationhepful in conversations or correspondence with individuals

36 w¶o have raised questions on the subject.UNIVEr.SITY OF C_

B E R K E L E Y

General Electric people can, as youknow, speak with confidence aboutthe Company's long-standing com-mitment to equal opportunity, bothas a policy and as a practice. OurCompany's leadership and progressin this field, despite some all-too-hu-man exceptions, have been supportedand commended by the knowledgeableorganizations and Government agen-cies working in this field.

We are not late-comers leaping on abandwagon; equal opportunity has beena mafter of personal importance to thetop executives of General Electric formany decades, and has no doubt beenan important factor in the Company'ssuccess in attracting and developingoutstanding people.

Gerard Swope, the Company'sPresident from 1920 until the end ofWorld War II, made determined ef-forts to be sure that General Elec-tric's personnel policies were not

tainted with discrimination, becauseof deep personal convictions on thismatter. The Company's next Presi-dent, Charles E. Wilson, rose fromthe Hell's Kitchen area of New Yorkto become chief executive officer ofGeneral Electric, and he too knew theimportance of equal opportunityfrom his own experience. In 1946,when President Truman formed thePresident's Committee on CivilRights, he called on Mr. Wilson to beits Chairman. The report of the Wil-son Committee, as it became known,was hailed as a significant advancein the field. Ralph Cordiner's admin-istration of General Electric waslikewise characterized by Companyleadership in this field; for example,General Electric was among the firstnine companies to pledge their sup-port for the Plans for Progress Pro-gram of the President's Committeeon Equal Opportunity. Fred Borch,on succeeding Mr. Cordiner, made itemphatically clear that he regards

continued progress in the equal-op-portunity area as an important partof every General Electric manager'sassignment.Under this kind of leadership,

General Electric's record as a wholehas been one of a Company which issincerely trying to follow non-dis-crimination as a regular way of life.In all such matters, the Company'sapproach is rooted in the recognitionthat:

* Equal opportunity is a basic con-cept of our society and a birthrightof every American;

* No nation can achieve full strength,health, and progress, if any segmentof its citizens does not have equalopportunity to advance economi-cally;As a Company seeking the bestqualified employees for availablejobs, we want to attract anyonewho can contribute the needed

LC-- C. Y) .- I "I I

abilities, scills, and efforts to ouroperations; it would make no busi-ness sense to exclude any individualfor Irrelevant reasons like race orcreed;

* Whenever a minority group is dis-advantaged economically, we as aCompany are disadvantaged too,by not being able to sell as manygoods and services.

The following examples (by nomeans a complete list) are given astypical of the Company's quiet deter-mination, without fanfare but witheffectiveness, to advance the principleand practice of equal opportunity forall citizens.

Nondiscrimination inEmployment

About thirty years ago (1935), theCompany issued a booklet over thesignature of Gerard Swope, Presi-dent, entitled, "G. E. Policy Concern-ing Wages, Hours and WorkingConditions of Shop Employees,"which stated, "There shall be nodiscrimination by foremen, superin-tendents, or any executives of theCompany against any employee be-cause of race, or creed, or because ofan employee's membership in anyfraternity, society, labor organizationor other lawful organization." Gen-eral Electric was one of the first, ifnot the first, of the large companiesto announce such a policy in writing.

That statement was reissued in1941 by the then President, CharlesE. Wilson, and has been reaffirmedin many Company documents andstatements through the years.

When the Company and the U. E.signed their first agreement in 1938,the same statement on non-discrimi-nation was incorporated. A similararticle on Discrimination and Coer-cion was later included in the first

agreement between the Company andthe I.U.E. (C.I.O.) in 1950. Todayit appears in agreements with theother unions with which the Com-pany has contractual agreements.

Because of the importance of thesubject, the Company has assignedservices responsibility directly to aconsultant in Management Develop-ment and Employee Relations Serv-ices. Dr. G. Roy Fugal of EmployeeBenefits and Practices Service isan interested, competent consultantwhose specific responsibility is to helpmanagers find ways to implement theCompany's objectives in this fieldmore effectively.

Constructive Action withKey Groups

Since the Company operates in allof the leading market areas of thenation, it has been contacted fre-quently over the years by variousgroups representing interests of theNegro including the National Asso-ciation for the Advancement of Col-ored People, the National UrbanLeague, etc.

Illustrative of constructive action wasa program launched in 1952 wherebyrepresentatives of the National UrbanLeague were extended invitations to visitCompany plants for discussions withlocal employee relations managers andother managers on personnel problemsrelated to the Negro worker. Includedwere visits to many of the plant andoffice work areas for first-hand observa-tions-twenty-two in all.

While the visits resulted in con-structive changes at some of the lo-cations, the survey report by Mr. J.A. Thomas, Director of the Depart-ment of Industrial Relations of theNational Urban League, was decided-ly complimentary. It cited particu-larly the past and present efforts ofthe Company in its demonstrated

efforts against racial discriminationand praised General Electric's coop-eration and forward-looking attitude.An important contributor to the

work of the National Urban Leagueis its Commerce and Industry Coun-cil. V. B. Day, General Electric VicePresident has been a member of thiscouncil and Dr. G. R. Fugal is cur-rently participating with this impor-tant group. At the local level, someof our Company executives are help-ing to organize local chapters of theUrban League, such as at Syracuse,N. Y., Oklahoma City, Okla., andelsewhere. Already established UrbanLeague Chapters are receiving theactive support of Company represent-atives in Lynn, Mass., Philadelphia,San Francisco, and other cities.

Examples of Affirmative ActionWhen General Electric opens a

plant in any section of the country,our policy of non-discrimination ismade clear from the start. For exam-ple, the Missile and Space VehicleDivision, from its very inception in1956, has recruited and hired on anon-discriminatory basis, and quali-fied Negroes are to be found innumbers in practically every occupa-tional category in MSVD. Moreover,and of equal importance, this compo-nent has worked effectively with thecommunity at large, helping to pro-mote the training of many minoritygroup applicants for good positionsnot only in General Electric, but inbusiness and industry generally inthe Philadelphia area. It has workedactively and also contributed to thesupport of the new "OpportunitiesCenter" officially opened in January,1964, for Philadelphia youth.

In response to a sharp increase indemand for jet engines, General Elec-tric's Engine Department at Even-dale, Ohio, experienced a very rapidbuild-up in total personnel in theearly 1950's. From the start, stepswere taken to establish firmly theconcept of equality of opportunityfor all. As a result, Negro workersat all levels have had opportunities toadvance to important managerial orprofessional positions on the basisof proven performance. Today, Negrosupervisors hold positions of respon-sibility in many areas of the plant,ranging as high as section manager.*

*It may be noted that in a company thesize of General Electric, the attainmentof a rank of Section Manager-Engi-neering in a Product Department isequivalent in responsibility to the rankof Vice President-Engineering in amulti-million dollar business.

'Our policy is clear...'

"Years ago the Company's policy ofnon-discrimination was formulated onthe basis of good corporate citizenship.Our action was not dictated by governmentpressure or by a desire to be well regarded,but simply as recognition of an obligationto do what is right. Our policy is clear,and each level of management must make0Q24110 ;.f ;O '219D07 4 Z D Q ^n " 5

F. J. BORCHPresident

Prereidenimp wemttuevryl-ocation."-utIimplemented at every location."

The Company's experiences at Even-dale, as elsewhere, have demonstratedthat Negro and white employees teamup effectively when a job is to be done;that white employees will work success-fully under a Negro supervisor; thatNegro managers can successfully recruitwhite engineers to work in their compo-nents.

Many of the Company's Negro em-ployees are prominent in the com-munity locally. At Evendale, one manrecently won a seat on the schoolboard. One of our senior engineeringexecutives, also a Negro, has attaineda national reputation as a designer ofadvanced jet engines, and, during therecent "Go-for-5" drive, was cited forprocuring the largest single controlsresearch contract in USAF Aero-nautical Division history.

Many other examples could be citedshowing continued progress in all sec-tions of the country. And by the way,when you visit General Electric'sProgressland exhibit at the New YorkWorld's Fair, you will find reassuringevidence that "progress" for GeneralElectric means human progress, noless than technical progress. Com-menting on our World's Fair hiringpolicies, William C. Thompson of theNAACP wrote, "If we are able to en-courage others to emulate your ex-ample, the World's Fair will truly bea peek into the future, a future fullof more than just intangible dreamsof equality."

Working with GovernmentAgencies

On October 5, 1954, when the Pres-ident's Committee on GovernmentContracts had been set up, headed upby then Vice President Nixon, theCompany issued to its managers thefirst in a series of Personnel Prac-tices Information Letters. This let-ter spelled out nondiscriminationprovisions applying to governmentcontractors and transmitted a book-let describing the functions of thenewly-created Committee. While thisletter related only to governmentcontracts, the nondiscrimination poli-cy which it described was, of course,already general Company practice forall work, government or non-govern-ment.

During the following year, eleven Per-sonnel Practices Workshops were heldthroughout the Company reaching morethan 850 employee relations people, atwhich time the functions of the Presi-dent's Committee, its procedures andrules were analyzed to insure under-standing and compliance.

"Steady progress in providing equalopportunity will not only move our country

closer to its high ideals, but also help toremove some serious obstacles to acceleratedeconomic growth. General Electric's Equal

Employment Opportunity Policy mustcontinue to be implemented on a Company-

wide front. This is what we all must do.It is not an optional matter for any one of us." G. L PIJA

As a result of periodic written andoral reports to this Committee, theCompany received commendation fromGeneral C. E. Ryan, Executive ViceChairman of the President's Commit-tee, who wrote: ". . . I feel that Gen-eral Electric has a very outstanding,fair employment policy. You are ren-dering full support to the President'sCommittee for which we are grate-ful."

In mid-1961 Mr. Cordiner repre-sented the Company at a meeting atthe White House at which time Gen-eral Electric became one of the firstnine companies to sign up as a "Plansfor Progress" company. This actionvoluntarily committed General Elec-tric to its continuing programagainst any discrimination in itsemployment practices and to a pro-gram of affirmative action in thefuture. President Johnson personallythanked Mr. Cordiner and expressedhis appreciation to the Company inwriting for this support.

The Company has continued tocarry out its responsibilities bothunder the "Plans for Progress" pro-gram and as a good corporate citizen.General Electric is giving and hasgiven strong support to the Presi-dent's Committee on Equal Employ-ment Opportunity. Dr. Fugal is oneof eighteen men from industry whoserve on the Advisory Council to thePresident's Committee. Company per-sonnel have undertaken special as-signments relative to the furtheranceof this Program and its intent, suchas speeches before college pres-ident groups encouraging training;taking leading roles in encouraginglocal Plans for Progress activities.And in twenty-two regional seminarsearly in 1964, covering virtually allComnpany organizational components,Benefits and Practices Service is giv-ing the subject of Equal Employment

UoMrk '

'HILLIPPEChairman

Opportunity special emphasis.

In addition to the annual measure ofemployment of non-whites which mustbe submitted to the President's Commit-tee, the Company established its ownself-evaluation analysis in 1963. Forthose locations which seemed to betardy in showing progress, Mr. Borchin February, 1964, asked the GroupExecutives to assure that action pro-grams were in place.

In 51 routine Compliance Reviewsby the U. S. Air Force in 1963 andearly 1964, most Company compo-nents have been designated as beingin general compliance. Furthermore,in eight complaints of discriminationfiled against the Company, seven wereclosed out, all finding that the inter-ested component had not discrimi-nated unfairly as charged. The re-maining case appears likely to beresolved with the same favorable re-sult. This kind of record is especiallynoteworthy in view of the fact that 81per cent of all complaints filed againstemployers have been resolved infavor of the complainants. However,these favorable results in no senseindicate that any manager can reston his oars. This is a broad, sensitivesubject where sound affirmative prog-ress still has top priority.

Encouraging Education:The College Level

The United Negro College Fundrepresents thirty-two private Negrocolleges and universities. Several pastand present directors of the Com-pany have served on its developmentcommittees, including Gilbert Hum-phrey, Thomas McCabe, SidneyWeinberg, and Robert Woodruff. TheCompany and the General ElectricFoundation have supported the workof this group for many years. Pastgrants included $25,000 in 1954 and$10,000 annually from 1956 through

'It is not an optional matter...'

1963. For the period 1964-67, a grantof $100,000 has been arranged in sup-port of the Fund's special drive tobroaden existing educational pro-grams, reinforce teaching strengths,provide more student aid, and up-grade laboratories and other facili-ties.

The Company's relationships withhiger education, however, involve moretha financia supporL

General Electric was one of thefirst companies to carry on an activeprogram of recruiting at the nation'scolleges and universities. Because ofthe technical orientation of so muchof the Company's business, the Com-pany annually seeks to attract top-flight graduates in science and en-gineering. In this search for newtalent, qualified Negro candidateshave regularly been treated on thesame basis as others being inter-viewed, with the natural result that arepresentative number have been em-ployed for various positions in theCompany. Engineering has been thepredominant field of interest. WhenHoward University (Washington, D.C.) became the first Negro school toearn accreditation by the EngineersCouncil on Professional Developmentin 1948, it was added to the list ofschools regularly visited by GeneralElectric recruiters-the first nationalfirm to do so. For several years, theGeneral Electric visitation at How-ard University was regarded as a bigevent. Today we are but one of manycompanies visiting Howard.

Currently, General Electric repre-sentatives visit a number of Negrocolleges who have strength in engi-neering, science, or mathematics. In-cluded are:Alabann A &MAtlata UniversityBethune.CookmanColege (DaytonaBeach)

Fblk University(Nashvflle)

Florida A & MMorehouse College

(Atanta)

Agicultural andTechnical CoBlegeof North Carolina

Prirle View A & M(Texas)

Southern UnIversity(Baton Rouge, La.)

Tennessee A & ITuskegee Instltute

(Alabama)

The number of individuals hiredfrom the Negro colleges in the pasthas not been as high as we wouldhave liked, but this has been dueprimarily to an inability to matchskills and abilities available with ac-tual Company needs. The major stepscurrently under way to upgradefacilities, faculty, and the studentbodies at a number of Negro collegesand universities should help consid-erably on this front. The intensifiedefforts by the Apollo Support De-partment, the Computer Department,and others to seek out qualified grad-

uates is already bearing fruit. Gen-eral Electric's Mississippi TestSupport Operation was one of onlytwo industries who responded to arequest from Tugaloo College inMississippi, which invited severalindustries to a conference on howthat institution could help supply theincreasing demand for technicallytrained people in that area. As F. K.McCune, Vice President-Engineer-ing Services, stated recently in re-sponse to an inquiry from a Big TenUniversity:

"Offers of positions for engineer-ing school graduates are basedon merit regardless of race,creed or color. Since perform-ance in the engineering profes-sion can be objectively measuredto a considerable extent, we be-lieve that engineering providesa good climate for employmentand advancement based on com-petence and proved performance."Non-white engineering and sci-entific school graduates haveachieved important positions hereboth as creative engineers andas managers of engineeringwork."

Helping in the High SchoolsMeanwhile, at the high school level,

a number of Company componentsare engaged in programs such asCareer Conferences to encouragecareers in various skills required bythe electrical industry, and to combatthe "dropout" problem.

One particularly successful pro-gram was carried on at BenjaminFranklin High School in Philadel-phia, with a substantial Negro enroll-ment, where school officials havecredited the work of people fromG.E.'s Missile and Space Division(many of them being themselves Ne-groes) with a dramatic rise in num-bers of student graduates and acorrespondingly sharp decline- indrop-outs.

General Electric people frequentlyare on panels and in seminars de-signed to provide career counselling.For example, during the spring, atthe request of the Southern Univer-sity (one of the colleges listed above)and Louisiana's State Department ofEducation, General Electric is mak-ing available a top scientist to par-ticipate in a First Annual LouisianaScience Seminar, a program intendedto encourage high ability secondaryschool students to pursue their scien-tific education.

In New York City, the Companyhas joined with other large employ-ers to sponsor a new secretarialcourse designed as a spring-boardfor minority group women seekingjobs with national corporations inthe metropolitan area. If this pilotcourse is successful, it may encour-age similar approaches in other cities.

Negro high school teachers and col-lege professors have been included regu-larly in the summer programs whichthe Company and the General ElectricEducational Foundation have sponsoredsince 1945. As a case in point, eighteenof the fifty high-school teachers attend-ing the six-week, all-expense paid pro-gram at the University of Kentucky in1963 were Negroes-probably the high-est percentage of Negroes ever enrolledin a given class at that institution.

The Prince Edward County (Vir-ginia) public schools had been closedfor four years (1959 to 1963) duringwhich time the majority of the 1,700Negro youngsters in the county hadreceived no formal schooling whatso-ever. A private corporation, thePrince Edward County Free SchoolAssociation, was established in 1963to operate these schools with privatesupport until litigation concerningtheir reopening under public auspiceswas resolved. General Electric Com-pany contributed thirty television re-ceivers to the private corporation toenable the local schools to tie in withthe educational TV station in Rich-mond.

A Continuing CompanyCommitment

The specific activities referred toabove are by no means exhaustive ofthe many ways in which GeneralElectric is trying to be constructivein meeting one of the most pressingproblems of our time. These specificactivities have been listed only asexamples which may be useful inquiet face-to-face discussions withthose who express an interest in con-tinued progress in these areas.

Seventeen years ago, the Presi-dent's Committee on Civil Rights,under the chairmanship of GeneralElectric's Charles E. Wilson, issueda report entitled "To Secure TheseRights." That report sounded a chal-lenge which rings true still today:

"The problem of Civll Rights is anational problem which affects every-one. We need to guarantee the samerights to every person regardless of whohe is, where he lives, or what his racial,religious, or national origins are."

Community and Government Relations Service, General Electric Company, 570 Lexington Ave., New York, N. Y. 10022