The Nation - News from June 28, 1989

The State Department has too few minorities and women in its overseas corps, and most of them are assigned to less-prestigious jobs such as handling passports and paper work, according to a congressional report. “Minorities and women are underrepresented in the State Department’s Foreign Service work force when matched against comparable civilian labor force representation,” said the report released by the General Accounting Office. The report follows court-ordered actions by the State Department, including suspension of its entrance examination and the notification to about 600 female officers they may be entitled to new jobs. The actions in April were the result of 13-year-old lawsuit.