Codes

TULALIP TERO CODE

Employment Preference

All employers operating within the boundaries of the Reservation shall give preference in all aspects of employment to qualified TERO preference individuals as listed below.

• Enrolled Tulalip Tribal members
• Spouses, parent of a Tribal member child, biological of an enrolled Tulalip Tribal member, current legal guardian of a Tribal Member dependent child (with court documentation of permanent guardianship or a domestic partner of a Tribal member with documentation).
• Other Natives of a federally recognized tribe, nation or band, including members of federally recognized Alaskan Native villages or communities.
• Spouse of federally recognized Native American (with documentation)

Exception: Where prohibited by applicable Federal Law the following preference order will apply:

• Natives who are local residents
• Other Natives

Enforcement

Any person, group of persons, organization, or entity that believes any employer or entity has violated any requirements of the TERO Code may file a written complaint with TERO.

TERO shall have the authority to independently initiate a complaint investigation if they have reason to believe a violation has occurred.

Legal Authority

TERO enforces the Tulalip code, and has developed the following workforce protections:

• Require employers to provide Native Americans preference in recruiting, hiring, training, and promotions
• Ensure that employers comply with the TERO Code
• Impose fines and other sanctions on employers who fail to comply with TERO Code
• An appeal process through the Tulalip TERO Commission and the Tulalip Tribal Court to ensure due process

Employee Grievance

Any individual employee aggrieved shall follow their human resource chain of command process to try to resolve the issue, prior to filing a complaint.

TERO Complaint Jurisdiction

• Preference in employment and contracting
• Workforce protection
  • Discrimination
  • Religious Accommodations
  • Harassment and retaliation

Note:

The TERO Office is here to assist with compliance; communication with the TERO Compliance officers is very important to ensure the understanding of the code requirements.

Contracting

Ensures that all Native American businesses from the TERO Native American Owned Business Registry are given the opportunity to bid on any construction project within the boundaries of the Tulalip reservation.

View Tulalip TERO Code

View the full codes.

TERO laws and ordinances enforce specific requirements upon employers such as regulating their employment practices and obligating them to provide preference in recruiting, hiring, training, and promotions to Native Americans.

TERO has compliance officers who will monitor the employer's performance to ensure they are in compliance with tribal preference provisions.

TERO can impose fines and other sanctions on employers who fail to comply with their specific Native American preference requirements.

A Tribes authority to enact and enforce Native American Employment Preference Law is grounded in its inherent sovereign powers of self-government. TERO supports the most basic principle of Indian Law and has been upheld by a host of Supreme Sourt decisions. TERO is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Representative (EEOC) on the Tulalip reservation.