Conciliation in employment discrimination

1. In cases involving allegations of discriminatory employment practices, the department, during the period beginning with the issuance of a probable cause determination, to the extent feasible, shall engage in conciliation with the parties in an attempt to resolve the charge of discrimination. 2. The department does not represent any party in the conciliation process and shall act as a neutral third party during the conciliation process in attempting to reach an agreement that is satisfactory to all parties. 3. A conciliation agreement between the charging party and the respondents shall be reduced to writing, is subject to departmental approval, and is enforceable in the same manner as a final determination of the department. A copy of the signed conciliation agreement shall be provided to the charging party and the respondents. 4. A conciliation agreement may include terms for monitoring compliance with the agreement. The department may require any party to submit compliance reports as the department deems necessary to show the manner of compliance with the terms of the conciliation agreement. 5. When the department is unable to obtain voluntary compliance and it is determined that further efforts would be futile or nonproductive, the charging party and the respondents shall be notified in writing that conciliation efforts have failed. If any party does not respond within fifteen days after the receipt of a proposed conciliation remedy, the department may conclude that conciliation has failed as a result of the inactivity. 6. The department shall monitor all conciliation agreements which have been approved by the department and which require specific performance by one or more of the parties. If it appears that a party is not in compliance with the terms of the agreement, the department shall notify the party in an attempt to obtain voluntary compliance or conduct further investigation into the alleged breach, or do both. 7. If there is probable cause to believe that a party has breached the conciliation agreement, the department may commence proceedings to enforce the agreement, unless to do so would not warrant the use of department resources.