The NCUA has acknowledged it falls short in employing Hispanics at all levels and minorities at high pay grade levels.

The findings were released this week as part of a Dodd-Frank Act-required report to Congress from the NCUA's Office of Minority and Women Inclusion.

The NCUA's report didn't list specifics, but according to EEOC's FY2010 report on NCUA, Hispanics represented only 4.15% of total employees, compared with 76.15% who classified themselves as white. Overall, the NCUA employs 46% women and 13% African Americans.

In senior pay levels, there was even less diversity at the agency. Only 2.44% of highly paid employees were Hispanic, and 2.44% African American. More than 90% were white, and nearly 76% were men. Hispanics and African Americans represent 2.5% of senior level managers; only 25% of NCUA senior level officials are women, a number relatively unchanged since 2006.

Key barriers to more diversity the NCUA identified included the fact that the regulator is a small agency not well known to the general public, the loss of hiring flexibility through the Federal Career Intern Program, which was used to recruit new hires from college campuses, and the nature of the government hiring process itself, which favors veterans.

The NCUA listed a number of strategies to improve diversity, including a shift in how open positions are advertised and incorporate diversity goals into its strategic plan and annual performance budget.

As for diversity within the industry, credit unions with 100 employees or more that are legally required to report diversity data to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission say women make up 42% of executive and senior level positions.

Additionally, women at large credit unions comprise 65% of mid-level management positions, and make up 71% of the total workforce. Minorities did not fare as well: only 11% of executive and senior positions were persons of color, with minorities representing 31% of the total workforce.

Reporting credit unions represent 7.5% of all federally insured credit unions, but employ 25% of all industry workers.  The NCUA said in its report that “even though this data does not capture the entire industry, it represents a substantial sample that is consistent with NCUA's experience.”

The NCUA also said field of membership and geographic service areas may limit a credit union's ability to hire minorities. Some rural credit unions are in areas with few minority residents. Others are chartered to serve FOMs that reach only specific ethnic and racial groups.

“These factors could limit their ability to become diverse if they strive to hire employees and management that reflect the members they are chartered to serve,” the report said.

The report can be found on the NCUA's website.