The Commission's Newsletter 
2008 Edition
Page 4

In June, the Commission co-hosted two forums on avoiding immigration-related employment discrimination. The first program chaired by Human Rights Commissioner Patricia L. Gatling and NYC Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) Commissioner Martha K. Hirst provided City agency EEO and personnel officers with special training on new immigrants in NYC and the City’s responsibilities as its largest employer. The program included Commissioner Guillermo Linares of the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, DCAS Deputy Commissioner Diane Crothers, Deputy Director of the City Planning’s Population Division Peter Lobo, and keynote speaker Robin M. Stutman, Special Litigation Counsel in the Office of Special Counsel for Immigration-Related Unfair Employment Practices, in the U.S. Department of Justice.

Commissioner Gatling and The NY Immigration Coalition Executive Director Chung-Wha Hong co-hosted the second forum for employers and business representatives. Joining them was NYC Councilmember John Liu from Queens. The Queens Library’s Director of the Adult Learner Program, Susan Dalmas, hosted the event. Robin M. Stutman, Esq., the keynote speaker, discussed anti-discrimination provisions of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and employer sanctions of Immigration and Reform Control Act of 1986 (IRCA).

Both events were part of an ongoing collaborative effort to educate immigrant workers, employers, and advocacy groups regarding the protections and obligations they have under IRCA and the NYC Human Rights Law. The Immigrant Employment Rights Program provides workshops, ESOL classes, literature, and multilingual presentations regarding discrimination in employment based on national origin, citizenship status or alienage. Funding assistance for the program is provided by the U.S. Department of Justice.