Chapter 12F — IMPLEMENTING THE MACBRIDE PRINCIPLES – NORTHERN IRELAND

San Francisco Administrative Code · 2025 edition · updated 2026-07-25 · San Francisco

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Publisher's Note: This Chapter has been AMENDED by new legislation (Ord. 192-25, approved 10/16/2025, effective 11/16/2025, oper. 1/1/2026). The text of the amendment will be incorporated under the new section number when the amending legislation is operative.

Sec. 12F.1. Intent.

Sec. 12F.2. Findings.

Sec. 12F.3. The MacBride Principles.

Sec. 12F.4. Retirement Board and System.

Sec. 12F.5. City Contracts.

Sec. 12F.6. Research and Education.

Sec. 12F.7. Severability.

SEC. 12F.1. INTENT. ¶

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Publisher's Note: This section has been AMENDED by new legislation (Ord. 192-25, approved 10/16/2025, effective 11/16/2025, oper. 1/1/2026). The text of the amendment will be incorporated under the new section number when the amending legislation is operative.

This ordinance is set forth in order to accomplish the following objectives:

(a) To declare the City and County of San Francisco's opposition to any form of religious discrimination.

(b) To influence any discriminatory practices of American corporations doing business in Northern Ireland.

(c) To support efforts to effect peaceful change with regard to the situation in Northern Ireland by means that are prudent and responsible.

(d) To send legislation to the government of the United Kingdom stating that the people of San Francisco oppose religious discrimination and encouraging the government of the United Kingdom to take more pro-active measures in support of affirmative action.

(e) To express the support of the Board of Supervisors of the City and County of San Francisco for the implementation of the MacBride Principles by companies from the United States who conduct business in Northern Ireland.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.2. FINDINGS.

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The Board of Supervisors hereby makes the following findings:

(a) The people of the City and County of San Francisco recognize the moral responsibility of communities to continually take political steps toward insuring that full human rights are obtained for all people and that religious discrimination is abolished.

(b) Northern Ireland is a sectarian state in which the rights of the Irish Catholic minority citizens have been severely restricted, particularly in terms of equal employment opportunities. The result of this religious discrimination has been an unemployment rate for Catholics which is more than twice that of the majority Protestants.

(c) The internationally recognized MacBride Principles are aimed at reducing employment discrimination in companies doing business in Northern Ireland, currently 26 of which are American firms. These MacBride Principles have been formally adopted by numerous state and local governments, including the States of New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and the Cities of New York, Philadelphia, Worcester, Hartford, Cleveland, Detroit, Chicago, Providence and Wilmington.

(d) The MacBride Principles are authorized by Dr. Sean MacBride, distinguished Irish statesman, Nobel Peace Prize laureate and founder of Amnesty International.

(e) The City of San Francisco has a tradition of regulating the use of public monies to ensure that purchases, deposits and investments are made consistent with moral standards in a manner which promotes public welfare.

(f) In keeping with this tradition, the Board of Supervisors seeks, through City policy, to influence those who do business in Northern Ireland.

(g) This legislation should not be construed to discourage future investment in Northern Ireland.

(h) A peaceful solution of the troubles in Northern Ireland depends on elimination of discrimination.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.3. THE MACBRIDE PRINCIPLES.

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The MacBride Principles call for affirmative action to be taken by institutions and companies doing business in Northern Ireland, by:

A. Increasing the representation of individuals from underrepresented religious groups in the work force, including managerial, supervisory, administrative, clerical and technical jobs.

A work force that is severely unbalanced may indicate prima facie that full equality of opportunity is not being afforded all segments of the community in Northern Ireland. Each signatory to the MacBride Principles must make every reasonable, lawful effort to increase the representation of underrepresented religious groups at all levels of its operations in Northern Ireland.

B. Providing adequate security for the protection of minority employees both at the workplace and while traveling to and from work.

While total security can be guaranteed nowhere today in Northern Ireland, each signatory to the MacBride Principles must make reasonable, goodfaith efforts to protect workers against intimidation and physical abuse at the workplace. Signatories must also make reasonable, good-faith efforts to ensure that applicants are not deterred from seeking employment because of fear for personal safety at the workplace or while traveling to and from work.

C. Banning provocative or religious or political emblems from the workplace.

Each signatory to the MacBride Principles must make reasonable, good-faith efforts to prevent the display of provocative sectarian emblems at their plants in Northern Ireland.

D. Publicly advertising all job openings and making special recruitment efforts to attract applicants from underrepresented religious groups.

Signatories to the MacBride Principles must exert special efforts to attract employment applications from the sectarian community that is substantially underrepresented in the work force. This should not be construed to imply a diminution of opportunity for other applications.

E. Providing that layoff, recall and termination procedures should not, in practice, favor particular religious groups.

Each signatory to the MacBride Principles must make reasonable, good-faith efforts to ensure that layoff, recall and termination procedures do not penalize a particular religious group disproportionately. Layoff and termination practices that involve seniority solely can result in discrimination against a particular religious group if the bulk of employees with greatest seniority are disproportionately from another religious group.

F. Abolishing job reservations, apprenticeship restrictions and differential employment criteria which discriminate on the basis of religious or ethnic origin.

Signatories to the MacBride Principles must make reasonable, good-faith efforts to abolish all differential employment criteria whose effect is discrimination on the basis of religion. For example, job reservations and apprenticeship regulations that favor relatives of current or former employees can, in practice, promote religious discrimination if the company's work force has historically been disproportionately drawn from another religious group.

G. Developing training programs that will prepare substantial numbers of current minority employees for skilled jobs, including the expansion of existing programs and the creation of new programs to train, upgrade and improve the skills of minority employees.

This does not imply that such programs should not be open to all members of the work force equally.

H. Establishing procedures to assess, identify and actively recruit minority employees with potential for further advancement.

This section does not imply that such procedures should not apply to all employees equally.

I. Appointing a senior management staff member to oversee the company's affirmative action efforts and the setting up of timetables to carry out affirmative action principles.

In addition to the above, each signatory to the MacBride Principles is required to report annually to an independent monitoring agency on its progress in the implementation of these principles.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.4. RETIREMENT BOARD AND SYSTEM.

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The Retirement Board of the City and County of San Francisco is hereby commended for its efforts in support of the MacBride Principles (with the exception of Principle E, as listed in Section 12F.3 of this Code) and the addition of the Principles to the Social Investment Policy of the Retirement Board. The Retirement Board is encouraged to take further steps to support these Principles by moving to the next level of the Social Investment Procedures which will be to actively promote proxies which would conform with the policy position of the Retirement Board, and by encouraging businesses with whom it deals, and in whom it invests, likewise to support the MacBride Principles.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.5. CITY CONTRACTS.

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All contracts entered into by a department head or officer empowered by law to enter into contracts on behalf of the City and County for public works or improvements to be performed, for a franchise, concession or lease of property, or for goods and services or supplies to be purchased at the expense of the City and County, or to be paid out of monies deposited in the Treasury or out of trust monies under the control or collected by the City and County, shall contain a statement urging companies doing business in Northern Ireland to move toward resolving employment inequities, and encouraging them to abide by the MacBride Principles. Each of these statements shall also urge San Francisco companies to do business with corporations that abide by the MacBride Principles. Above the signature line for use by contractors on each contract shall be placed an

acknowledgment confirming that they have read and understood the City's statement urging companies doing business in Northern Ireland to move toward resolving employment inequities, encouraging compliance with the MacBride Principles, and urging San Francisco companies to do business with corporations that abide by the MacBride Principles.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.6. RESEARCH AND EDUCATION.

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(a) The Board of Supervisors shall send, and the Mayor is asked to join in, a letter to all United States corporations listed by the Investment Responsibility Research Center as doing business in Northern Ireland. This letter shall state the City's support for the MacBride Principles and urge the corporations to abide by the Principles. The letter shall ask that each recipient company sign and return to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors a statement agreeing to the Principles. Each letter will clearly state that the Board shall evaluate the issue further in one year, and may amend the City's policies regarding implementation of the MacBride Principles in light of the progress made with regard to the elimination of employment inequities in Northern Ireland.

recipient company sign and return to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors a statement agreeing to the Principles. Each letter will clearly state that the Board shall evaluate the issue further in one year, and may amend the City's policies regarding implementation of the MacBride Principles in light of the progress made with regard to the elimination of employment inequities in Northern Ireland.

(b) The Clerk of the Board shall report to the Board of Supervisors by July 1, 1989 and by January 1, 1990 on the letters that were sent as required in the immediately preceding paragraph, and on any responses received. The Controller shall report to the Board of Supervisors by July 1, 1989 and by January 1, 1990 on the number of companies with whom the City is doing business who are conducting business in Northern Ireland.

(c) The City Treasurer shall sent a statement to banks with whom the City has deposits and encourage them to do business with corporations that abide by the MacBride Principles.

(d) The Board of Supervisors, through the Clerk of the Board, shall send a letter to the government of the United Kingdom conveying a copy of this legislation and expressing opposition to religious discrimination.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.7. SEVERABILITY.

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The provisions of this ordinance are declared to be separate and severable. The invalidity of any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or portion of this ordinance, or the invalidity of the application thereof to any person or circumstances shall not affect the validity of the remainder of this ordinance, or the validity of its application to other persons or circumstances.

(Added by Ord. 107-89, App. 4/7/89)

SEC. 12F.8. SEVERABILITY

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Publisher's Note: This section has been ADDED by new legislation (Ord. 192-25, approved 10/16/2025, effective 11/16/2025, oper. 1/1/2026). The text of the amendment will be incorporated under the new section number when the amending legislation is operative.

SEC. 12F.9. OPERATIVE DATE AND SUNSET.

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