There’s an adage that dates back to the 19th century that is said that an apple a day will keep the doctor away. At the National Institutes of Health (NIH) regardless of what fruits and/or vegetables you’re consuming, rest assured you can always find a ‘Counselor of the Day’ ready and willing to greet you in the Office of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI). When meeting with one of our Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) counselors, it is confidential, private, and objective; our counselors are available to help you sort through your areas of concern. If you may be experiencing unfair treatment and/or harassment due to your race, color, religion, national origin, sex, age, disability, genetic information, transgender status, sexual orientation, gender identity, retaliation for protected activity(ies), or anything that’s on your mind related to the EEO process, you have the following options and are encouraged to contact us in any of the following ways:

• Stop by at our office for a face-to-face meeting at 2 Center Drive Building 2, 3rd Floor, Bethesda, MD 20892
• Give us a call at the EDI mainline at 301-496-6301
• Email us at edi.resolutions@nih.gov
• Or you can submit an E-file if you would like to file a complaint

It is important to know that you do not have to be filing a complaint to speak with one of our counselors. Meeting or speaking with a counselor does not automatically start the filing of an EEO complaint. Having a dialogue can help you make a more informed decision and know what your next steps are. Our counselors are available to speak with current and former NIH employees (supervisors too), applicants for employment, contractors, Commissioned Corps Officers, or Title 42 employees.

Haven’t had an apple today? You can get your vitamin C intake with our onsite ‘Counselor of the Day’ and find out how we may be of help in any way. If you or anyone you know is experiencing a form of discrimination, please share this fruitful article and read some common FAQs brought to you by the Division of Resolutions and Equity.

Note to reader: There is a statutory requirement for the EEO process to effectively take place and that is that an alleged incident must be brought to the attention to one of our counselors within 45 days of the occurrence or within 45 days of when you first became aware of the incident(s).

Do you have a story idea for us? Do you want to submit a guest blog? If it's about equity, diversity, or inclusion, please submit to edi.stories@nih.gov.

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