Georgia County Government-August 2008

again concludes that there is no reasonable cause to believe that the respondent public employer has engaged in an unlawful practice, the administrator would issue a subsequent order dismissing the complaint. The complainant would be notified of the right to petition for review in the appropriate superior court as provided by Georgia law or to request a “right to sue” letter from the EEOC.13 Procedure in the Event of a ‘Cause’ Finding/Referral to Special Master The administrative procedure differs in the event that the administrator finds cause to believe that an unlawful discriminatory practice actually existed. In those instances, the administrator is required to eliminate the unlawful practice by conference, conciliation and persuasion. This portion of the administrative effort normally results in a formal conciliation agreement. The conciliation agreement would customarily require the respondent employer to refrain from the unlawful practice in the future and make further provisions as may be agreed upon between the administrator and the public respondent employer. The terms of the conciliation agreement are then placed into a final order, which in turn triggers a follow-up investigation after one year and at other times in the discretion of the administrator’s staff in order to ensure compliance.14 All conciliation efforts are confidential and privileged and are not made public by the administrator or any agent of the administrator without the written consent of the complainant and the public respondent employer.15 If the administrator determines there is reasonable cause to believe that there has been unlawful activity but is unable to eliminate the discriminatory practice, the administrator then refers the complainant to a special master. The special master would ultimately conduct a hearing and issue a final order.16 Unlike the EEOC, the Commission on Equal Opportunity does not bring suit against perceived public employer offenders on behalf of the complainant(s).17 Additional Procedural Considerations Unless the complaint is dismissed or a conciliation agreement has been reached within 90 days after the complaint is fi led, the administrator is required to request that the governor appoint a special master to an unresolved complaint to supervise discovery and ultimately to conduct a hearing. No later than 15 days after this deadline is reached, the governor must select an appropriate special master from a list of attorneys promulgated by the Board of Commissioners of the Commission on Equal Opportunity. The special master has all the power and authority granted to agencies to conduct hearings. This power includes issuing subpoenas and rendering final orders under the Georgia Administrative Procedure Act.18 After appointment of the special master, the administrator serves both the complainant and the respondent employer by registered or certified mail or “statutory overnight delivery” with written notice, including a copy of the complaint requiring the public respondent employer to answer the allegations contained in the Complaint at a hearing before the special master. The time and place for the hearing are also specified in the notice. This written notice should contain all general and specific allegations against the public respondent employer. The employer’s answer must be served on the special master by registered or certified mail, not more than 20 working days after receipt of the notice of hearing. The special master may extend this filing period for an additional time not to exceed 10 working days. The answer must also be served on the complainant or the complainant’s attorney.19 RELY ON WINDSTREAM… For Your Home For Your Business Discovery At any time after the Notice of Hearing is served, both parties are authorized to engage in discovery in the manner permitted by the Georgia Civil Practices Act.20 At the end of the discovery process, unless the case is resolved, the special master will conduct a hearing. The discovery period is the point during the dispute where the parties exchange information. The Georgia Civil Practice Act permits several different types of discovery, including written interLAW continued on page 28 385952_Wind.indd 1 AUGUST 2008 www.accg.org 27 6/12/08 8:40:35 AM http://www.windstream.com http://www.accg.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Georgia County Government-August 2008

Georgia County Government- August 2008 Contents President’s Message County Matters Georgia’s Transportation Issues More Critical to Counties than Ever Expanding Rural Airports: Partnering for Economic Development in Upson County Meet DOT Commissioner Gena Abraham Bridge Infrastructure and Risk Counties and the Law: Georgia’s Fair Employment Practices Act Georgia’s Grand Old Courthouses: Coffee County Extension News: Infrastructure Investments Save County Funds Research Corner: Getting the Most Out of Your Research Discover the New Georgia Encyclopedia NACo News Staff News County Parade Index of Advertisers

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