Now, with a staff of more than 800 employees in offices operating within the nation’s capital and other major metropolitan areas, CFPB has now named a career public servant to ensure that fairness and equal opportunity will be equally and aggressively pursued. A man who has spent his career fighting for inclusion and equal opportunity has now joined the CFPB: Stuart Ishimaru.
According to CFPB Director Richard Cordray, “The Dodd-Frank Act directed federal regulators, all of them, to set up Offices of Minority and Women Inclusion. At the Consumer Bureau, we take this mandate very seriously. We understand how important it is to include women and people of color in our work, and so we have asked Stuart, one of the best in the field, to join our team.”
In response, Ishimaru added in part, “One of the reasons why I came to the CFPB was for the opportunity to be part of the effort to build a 21st century agency that looks like America and has in its DNA the core values of diversity ad inclusion and sound business practices that are fair, 1transparent, and make sense.”
As Ishimaru begins his new duties, he is charged with ensuring that CFPB fulfills its specific statutory duties:
· Implementing equal employment opportunity standards to achieve racial, ethnic and gender diversity in the Bureau and throughout its workforce;
· Increasing participation of minority and women-owned businesses in the CFPB’s programs and contracts; and
· Standardizing and assessing the diversity policies and practices of CFPB-regulated entities.
Continuing Ishimaru said, “Years ago I saw an opportunity to do great work for Americans who are often underrepresented and underserved. I believe that equal opportunities, diversity, and inclusion are what make this country thrive – they are what make us great.”
He comes to the CFPB from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, where he served two terms beginning in 2003. Named Acting Chair of the Commission in 2009, he helped to recover over $370 million dollars in relief for victims of workplace discrimination. As a commission member, he also worked to protect the public from unlawful discrimination and harassment in all work situations, such as hiring, firing, promotions, training, wages and benefits.
A California native and lawyer by training, he has also served on the staff of the U.S. House Judiciary Subcommittee on Civil and Constitutional Rights, two House Armed Services Subcommittees (1984-1993), and as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (1994-1991).
The Office of Minority and Women Inclusion was a key provision championed by California Congresswomen Maxine Waters. As a member of the House Financial Services Committee, her voice and leadership in crafting Dodd-Frank ensured that the specific concerns of minorities, both as consumers and small business owners, would be a key part of the new Bureau.
As a result, in CFPB’s first report to Congress that detailed the first six months of operation, small and disadvantaged businesses, many of them minority-owned, were awarded over 21 percent of its contract dollars.
“The CFPB has done a lot since July 2011 and as we near our one-year anniversary, there is still much to be done”, said Ishimaru. “Our Office of Minority and Women Inclusion will work to ensure that diversity and inclusion are more than just considerations; they are defining standards for the work we do.”
To learn more about the Office of Minority and Women Inclusion, visit: www.consumerfinance.gov.
