The City of Peoria’s hiring of minority and female employees is far behind in matching local census numbers. That’s according to a presentation from the local NAACP:
The report says 18-percent of the City’s workforce is minority employees. The latest census numbers show 37-percent minority population in Peoria. Local NAACP President Don Jackson says 87-percent of the city’s hires from 2011 to last May were white:
“Apparently unless we continue the dialogue with the city each and every year, the need for diversity in those departments and others is forgotten.”
Jackson also says no female firefighters have been hired since 1998, and out of 26 new police hires, only five were minority officers. City officials say one challenge is not getting enough minority applicants in the first place. They say a special police and fire committee will come back in three months with ways to boost minority hiring.