Interview
The Boeing Company
Boeing’s Diversity Pilot A Close-up of Vice President Joyce Tucker
J
oyce E. Tucker, Vice President, Global Diversity and Employee Rights at Boeing, is this month’s featured Front-Runner. Her personal experiences working with mentally ill young people and self-championing fairness
and equity in the Illinois Dept. of Mental Health segued into service as founding Director of the Illinois Department of Human Rights, and later as Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner named by presidential appointment. As someone who has worked “both sides” of the regulatory parameters for diversity in the field’s developing years, her story is rich with personal and conceptual history.
Please describe your career path and your motto, ‘With adversity comes determination and opportunity.’ “I’ll never forget the day back in 1972 at the Department of Mental Health where I was passed over for a promotion, from counselor to supervisor. I was surprised when my supervisor selected a less-experienced white male. It never occurred to me that out of the three positions being filled, I would not get one of the promotions. Like most people, I compared my work performance with those around me, and I knew I was doing a good job. When I asked my boss why I didn’t get the promotion he stated, ‘I can promote who I want.’ Well, he also said some other things, but I’ll leave those out. I knew this was unfair and believed it was discriminatory. I filed a grievance and won the promotion with back pay. I learned what it felt like to be discriminated against and to have to fight for what I deserved.
Profiles in Diversity Journal
March/April 2005
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