Boston-native Christine M. Griffin has taken over the number two spot at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). One of her top tasks will be to help OPM Director John Berry increase the diversity of the federal government, which he has called one of his top long-term goals.
Before being appointed to the position by President Barack Obama on May 12, 2009 (she was confirmed by the United States Senate on July 30 and took office on January 4, 2010), Griffin was a Commissioner of the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission (EEOC). There, she helped develop and approve enforcement policies, including those authorized by law, regulation, or order.
According to a news release from the OPM, “Griffin was a vocal supporter of promoting a diverse Federal workforce, as well as a proponent of greater efficiency and fairness in the Federal EEO process. She has also been a strong advocate for women’s rights and the rights of individuals with disabilities.”
Both are areas Griffin has personal experience with. She was one of only 11 women in the second co-ed class of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy, where she earned her undergraduate degree in 1983. While she was in school there, she was involved in an accident that left her confined to a wheelchair.
Before her appointment with the EEOC, Griffin worked extensively in labor and employment law positions in both the public and private sectors, including her service as the Executive Director of the Disability Law Center in Boston from 1996 to 2005. From 1995 to 1996, she was an Attorney Advisor to the former Vice Chair of the EEOC, Paul M. Igasaki, advising him on legal matters and policy issues. She is also a Vietnam-Era Veteran of the U.S. Army, serving on active duty from 1974-1977.
“The more I learned as commissioner at the EEOC, the more I learned that everything I wanted to change happened at OPM and not at EEOC,” Griffin said. “Looking at the data we collect with the various agencies, and interacting with the EEO directors of the various agencies, a lot of the fixes that I think will make the federal government be a better employer can only be done at OPM.”
This is a noteworthy and necessary goal for OPM. The true measure of how successful an organization is at diversity is to look at the upper echelon of power. Many organizations measure their success or failure at diversity based on pure breakout numbers, but that’s misleading.