Join us for the Community Day Parade!

The Lambda PTO group prepares to participate on the Community Day Parade 2014Last year, was the first time for Lambda at the Community Day Parade. We had a good time, carried a huge rainbow flag and walked with pride with our colleagues and friends. This year, we’re doing it again! Come join us as we assemble by the Command Booth this May 5th at 10:30 AM. We usually try to wear a pink shirt or the colors of the rainbow, your choice. Any ideas for props, trinkets or noisemakers we could use is very welcome. Let’s fly the rainbow flag!

Upcoming Webinar: Feel More Comfortable With Your Gay Identity at Work

The Office of Human Resources Benefits and Worklife Branch, in partnership with LifeCare, will host a “Confidence: Feel More Comfortable with Your Gay Identity at Work” webinar Tuesday, April 7 from noon – 1 p.m. ET. Register here. LifeCare Consulting Trainer Steve Earley will discuss how confidence is built over time, developing your core competencies in your work, being aware of how secrets can limit you, and letting go of shame and discomfort about yourself. For inquiries related to the “Confidence: Feel More Comfortable with Your Gay Identity at Work” webinar or other USPTO Wellness events, contact the Compensation and Benefits Division.

Visit the USPTO Worksite Wellness online site and select calendar of events to view program details.All seminars are open to USPTO employees and their family members. All participants who are not USPTO employees must obtain visitors’ passes at the nearest security desk.All programs are physically accessible to employees with disabilities. Requests for sign language interpretation, other auxiliary aids, or special arrangements should be made as far in advance as possible to the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity (OEEOD) or Tamika Beverly.

On Campus

Wise Women’s History Month “Weaving the Stories of Women’s Lives” is happening TODAY at 11:30 in the  Madison Auditorium.

More InfoVolunteers Needed for Take Our Daughters And Sons To Work Day at the Alexandria Campus on April 23, 2015. We need greeters, registration personnel, escorts, hosts, photographers, session monitors, floaters, set-up personnel, break-down personnel, pre-event help.
For more info, contact Cheryl Hardy.

BIG 2015 Scholarship Video Essay Contest. The United States Patent and Trademark Office Chapter of Blacks In Government (PTO-BIG) Constance E. Green (CEG) Scholarship, invites currently enrolled 12th grade students, who will attend college in the Fall of 2015, to apply for a $500.00 scholarship that addresses the challenges of empowering school aged girls to pursue Science Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) related fields. More info…

IPSIA Noruz Ball 2015 at Madison Auditorium on Saturday March 28, 2015 from 6pm-12pm. We would like to remind you that IPSIA Norouz Ball 2015 (6th annual Norouz Ball) tickets are being sold. Please consider purchasing your tickets by COB Tuesday March 24th since the seating assignment is based on First Come First Serve. More info…

A note from Office of EEO and Diversity

5886225374_74f0e5f677_oThank you for noticing our inadvertent omission in our NoFEAR training.  We intend to fix the NoFEAR CBT by inserting “including Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity” in the “sex” basis on slide 3 of the CBT, and then remove the term “sexual orientation” from slide 18— Additional Protections.  The Agency wants to ensure that all employees are aware that the USPTO provides legal protection under the EEOC’s regulations and case law for discrimination claims involving sexual orientation and gender identity and processes them the way we do all complaints arising under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, and the Rehabilitation Act.

Additionally, the narrator’s notes for the audio on slide 3 will be updated to state:

“A federal agency cannot discriminate against an employee or applicant with respect to the terms, conditions or privileges of employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation based on stereotyping and gender identity), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, and retaliation.”

Thanks again for providing your thoughtful comments to help us best serve the USPTO community.