Project Equality (PE) is a national interfaith program designed to support, encourage and assist employers to take positive steps to achieve equal employment opportunity. The United Methodist Church is a member, along with many other faith groups. As a matter of principle, the Church and the Women’s Division screen our business dealings for Project Equality approval wherever possible. PE works with business management on a volunteer basis -- asking them to fill out a questionnaire concerning their workforce composition and equal employment policies. Project Equality then gives the establishment ratings: AAA-Excellent; AA-Good; A-Accepted; P-Probationary; U-Unwilling to provide data.
Before you set out to consider one or more commercial establishments for your gathering, ask Project Equality to send you some background information on their program and the forms companies must complete. Make copies of everything so you can leave information behind with the manager, if need be, and still have your own set for future reference. In advance of any visits with prospective hotels/motels, ask the PE staff for a list of any motels, hotels, or other lodging facilities they have rated in the area and what the ratings were.
When you make your initial visit to consider facilities, first consider those which have already received a positive PE rating. If this isn’t feasible or there are none, ask the management of all the hotels/motels you consider if they have been evaluated by Project Equality and what their rating is during your first visit. You may need to explain briefly what P.E. is, so be prepared for this. If you like other aspects of a particular hotel/motel, ask if they would be willing to complete the simple questionnaire. Specify that equal opportunity for women and people of color is an important value to you and that is a criterion for deciding who will get your business. (Click here for a Sample PE Inquiry Letter that you can download and use.)
You can stipulate a PE audit as a condition which must be met before you sign any contract with the establishment, or make the stipulation a part of the contract you sign. This may sound tough to do, but it is not. Management often is surprisingly cooperative. It may help to "sprinkle" into your conversation the names of competing hotels/motels which have already participated in the process, or of other franchises in the same chain which have undergone the process. PE staff can give you this information (or look it up in the PE directory, if you have one.) The review process may only take a few weeks. Check in advance with the PE staff to see what their current time frame is for evaluating companies.
If the establishment(s) you choose is a PE member, or once it has successfully gone through the auditing process, personally thank the manager. Also, consider putting this information in advance materials about the gathering or making an announcement at the gathering as a way of educating participants, giving people a new idea of something they can do to promote fairness, and of reinforcing your appreciation of the management’s efforts.
Project Equality
6301 Rockhill Road, Suite 315
Kansas City, MO 64131
Telephone: (816) 361-9222 Fax: (816) 361-8997