Financial Services Diversity Initiative

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 140) recognizing the low presence of minorities in the financial services industry and minorities and women in upper level positions of management, and expressing the sense of the Congress that active measures should be taken to increase the demographic diversity of the financial services industry, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.

I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I want to commend the leadership of this House for bringing this resolution to the floor. I'm an individual who has great concerns about America's ability to maintain its global advantage economically in the years to come.

Globalization is making the world a much smaller place. And although globalization has improved economic conditions in many parts of the world and has contributed greatly and mightily to the United States' prosperity, it also means that competition that was once domestic is now international. Young children today don't only have to compete with people of their town for work, now they compete with the people from their region. Businesses that once faced regional competition now face international competition. Not only can you now ship products all over the globe, but modern communications now allows you to contract professional services from anywhere in the world without needing a person and personal meetings. Capital now moves across the planet instantaneously at the push of a button.

What does all this have to do with my resolution, Mr. Speaker, the Financial Services Diversity Initiative? It has to do with the fact one of America's leading industries where we have the global advantage is, in fact, financial services.

As outlined in the resolution, financial services represents 7 percent of the total employment in the United States, and the industry is a key component of the U.S. trade surplus in services.

The service sector is the largest and most dynamic force in the U.S. economy. Services account for over 80 percent of the United States' GDP and employment. Financial services is a key component of our dominance in services, along with express delivery, telecommunications, information technology, audiovisual, energy, transportation and professional services.

In every single congressional district in the United States, the majority of the workforce is employed in the service sector. In no district is there fewer than 70 percent of the workforce employed in services, and in some districts that figure is as high as 92 percent. Moreover, the service sector is projected to account for virtually all new job growth in the United States over the next half decade. And States like New York, North Carolina, Florida and California that already have major financial services, financial services will be a major component of that growth.

Despite current conditions, our long-term dominance in this area is not inevitable. As the McKenzie Report indicated, our lead in financial services is being challenged all over the globe, particularly by London. In that study, the executives surveyed stated that one of the key factors in choosing a location from which to operate was an available and skilled workforce.

As a Member from New York, which is America's financial services capital, and a member of the Financial Services Committee, I have interacted and visited many financial services firms from the various sectors of this industry. I've been very supportive of the industry because it is of importance to America's competitive advantage and the financial health of my dear city, New York. However, the lack of diversity in the industry is glaring, particularly where African Americans and Latinos are concerned. Although women are more than 50 percent of the industry, their absence is much greater in the executive management and the boardrooms.

In a 2006 study conducted by the GAO that was requested by the Financial Services Committee, firm officials that were surveyed acknowledged that despite having problems, they still faced challenges in recruiting and retaining minority candidates. According to the report, ``Some officials also said that gaining employees' buy-in to diversity programs was a challenge, particularly among middle managers who were often responsible for implementing key aspects of such programs.''

To bring the issue closer to home, in New York State, the Department of Labor statistics shows that financial activities account for approximately 460,000 jobs. African Americans and Latinos together make up 53 percent of New York City's population. The same source states that nearly 40 percent of blacks and 35 percent of Latinos are unemployed. This is not to say that the financial services industry is responsible for the unemployment, but the fact of the matter is that if you are not able to place your majority population in the majority industries of your city, you're going to have a serious unemployment problem. And let's face it, whatever industry you're talking about, your greatest resource is going to be human resources.

In this resolution, I'm not asking for quotas or percentages, I'm asking for the government and the industry to take steps that are consistent with America's promise of fairness and opportunity toward increasing the diversity of the industry on all levels.

Years ago, this Congress passed the Community Reinvestment Act, and banks found out that doing business with a more diverse client base was very profitable. I believe the entire industry will find the same is true with a more diverse workforce.

I strongly encourage the Members of this House to pass this resolution, which simply says that we want the best opportunities for all Americans.

Let me take a moment to thank Chairman Frank and Ranking Member Bachus for working in a bipartisan way in bringing this through the committee and to the floor. I also want to thank Jameel Johnson of my staff, Erika Jeffers and Jaime Lizarraga of Mr.

Frank's staff, who happen to be two African Americans, one is a female and one is a Latino, showing how diversity works, and we are working together.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

I yield myself such time as I may consume simply to thank the gentlelady from Illinois for her support in working in a clearly bipartisan manner in this particular matter so that we can get our friends in the financial services to offer opportunities to men and women who happen to be minorities, and we can move on and share in this great population.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 140. This resolution recognizes the low presence of minorities in the financial services industry and minorities and women in upper-level positions of management. It also expresses the sense of Congress that active measures should be taken to increase the demographic diversity of the financial services industry.

I would like to thank the gentleman from New York, Congressman Meeks, for introducing this resolution and for his leadership in the very important issue of diversity in the financial services industry.

As co-Chair of the Women's Caucus Business Task Force and as one of only 13 women in the U.S. Congress, including the House and the Senate, who serve on a committee overseeing the financial services sector, I would like to focus my remarks today on women in this industry.

As I have learned from my own experience on the Financial Services Committee, women are few and far between in upper-level positions of management and in financial services. This resolution acknowledges this factor and rightly encourages industry to take action to increase diversity.

Mr. Speaker, women and minorities are still just that, the minority, in corporate boardrooms throughout the financial services industry. According to a publication called ``Women in Financial Services: The Word on the Street'' released by Catalyst in 2001, women cited a number of reasons why they might be missing at the table.

Almost three-quarters of the women surveyed cited a lack of mentors as an obstacle barring them from advancing. Well over 50 percent of the women cited exclusion from informal networks of communication, lack of women role models, failure of senior leadership to assume accountability for women's advancement, and several additional factors as barriers to success. The same report cites that 65 percent of women have to work harder than men to get the same rewards, and that women are paid less for doing similar work.

The Government Accountability Office released the report that Mr. Meeks just spoke about revealing that over an 11-year period, the commitment to diversity in the financial services industry was strong. However, the GAO found that this commitment has yet to translate into any real progress for women.

The GAO report also said, ``Research reports suggest that minority and women-owned businesses have difficulty obtaining access to capital for several reasons.'' According to another Catalyst study, ``a small minority of women, 18 percent, report that opportunities to advance to senior leadership in their firm have increased over the past 5 years,'' and ``60 percent of women report opportunities to advance to senior leadership have improved somewhat or slightly.''

So, what do we do about the relatively small number of women leaders in the financial services industry? I would suggest that step one is to recognize the problem, which we are doing with this resolution today, and step two is to encourage the financial services industry to take action and explore ways to increase the involvement of women and minorities in the financial services industry.

Currently, programs like those sponsored by Girls, Incorporated are working to promote economic and financial literacy among young women. I would like to commend them for their work, and also commend the efforts of all of those involved with Women's Policy Inc., Women Impacting Public Policy, the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council, and many others who are promoting women in business.

In addition, it is my hope that during this Congress we can go beyond this resolution. I hope that we can examine ways to propel women in business, women in financial services forward and help them secure leadership roles in the industry.

As the new ranking member of the Financial Services Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, I intend to request that our subcommittee hold a hearing to examine the issues of access to capital for women business owners, especially those in the financial services. I hope that we can hold such a hearing during this Congress.

It is important that we continue to examine the barriers confronting women in business and find ways to help them overcome these barriers. I believe that increasing the number of qualified women in leadership roles in the financial services industry will both enrich the industry and make it more competitive.

Again, I thank the author of this resolution, Mr. Meeks.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to identify the low representation of minorities and women in the financial services industry. The Financial Services Diversity Initiative calls upon the public and private sector to provide more opportunities for minorities and women to succeed in the financial services industry.

The financial service industry has an extraordinary impact on the country, including my home district of Dallas, TX. While many industries have successfully created a diverse workplace, the financial service industry has fallen short, creating an unacceptable disparity for minorities and women. As a society, it is our responsibility to promote the diversity in the workplace and ensure confidence in any individual's ability to succeed at all levels.

In order to raise awareness and combat these disparities, we must furnish all children a first class education. Education is the vital threshold in expanding opportunities to qualified candidates, regardless of their race or sex. The Financial Services Diversity Initiative enforce fairness and accountability to all educational and employment sectors.

Mr. Speaker, as a person of color and a woman, I know first hand the importance of equality and diversity. I strongly support the Financial Services Diversity Initiatives which offers to eliminate the inequality among minorities and women in the financial services industry.