Recruiting A Diverse Workforce Within the National Weather Service: NWS Diversity Equity Inclusion and Accessibility (DEIA)

It is well documented that science agencies across the federal government have challenges recruiting a diverse workforce, including the National Weather Service (NWS). To address these challenges and ensure the organization mirrors the communities we serve, the NWS developed three Tiger Teams in 2020 to improve the diversity, culture, and employee experience of the agency. Over the course of two years, the Tiger Teams developed and submitted 31 recommendations to NWS senior leadership, with seven of those recommendations related to recruitment and retention. In 2023, the Tiger Teams implemented 25 of the recommendations, including establishing the NWS Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) Recruitment Team, as recommended by the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Belonging, Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity (BIDE) Tiger Team. The NWS DEIA Recruitment team was formed to address Goal 1 of the NWS DEIA Strategic Action Plan: Recruitment.

The purpose of the recruitment team is to augment NWS BIPOC recruitment efforts with a focus on the seven (7) special emphasis programs: Federal Women, Hispanic, Disability, African-American or Black, American, Indian Alaska Native, Asian American Pacific Islander, and the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer or Questioning Emphasis Programs. These programs are recognized and supported by the Department of Commerce and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) policies. The DEIA Recruitment Team consists of approximately 40 NWS employees from various career paths and grade levels that leverages the geographic footprint of the agency. Working closely with the NWS DEIA program, the team serves as a resource and partner’s with NWS leadership and weather forecast offices to identify and establish recruiting partnerships, materials, training, and events focused on increasing the number of applicants from the 7 special emphasis groups to NWS job postings and selections for NWS positions.