A Department of Justice (DOJ) watchdog is raising new concerns about a "glass ceiling" preventing women at the nation’s premier law enforcement agencies from rising in their positions.

The DOJ's inspector general said in a report released Tuesday that women account for just 16 percent of criminal investigative jobs inside the department’s main investigative agencies and hold few executive leadership positions.

In addition, female criminal investigators across the department reported they “believed there was ongoing gender discrimination in their agencies or offices” including different treatment and advancement opportunities when compared to their male counterparts.

Hill.TV’s new morning show "Rising" with Krystal Ball and Buck Sexton is focusing on the issue of a glass ceiling on Wednesday, when former FBI agent Robyn Gritz appears to talk about the discrimination lawsuit she filed a few years ago raising such concerns. The show airs at 8 a.m. at hill.tv/rising.

The DOJ watchdog said Tuesday that it initiated its review after receiving "several complaints from various sources" including Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley Charles (Chuck) Ernest GrassleyThe Hill's 12:30 Report: Ginsburg lies in repose Top GOP senators say Hunter Biden's work 'cast a shadow' over Obama Ukraine policy Read: Senate GOP's controversial Biden report MORE (R-Iowa) and DOJ employees "expressing concerns about gender discrimination and harassment in the Department’s law enforcement components."

The inspector general, the same office that released a report earlier this month excoriating FBI agents for expressing political opinions in work emails and text messages during the 2016 election, conducted more than 130 individual interviews and 57 focus groups for its report.

The review found that investigators were told on multiple occasions that there is a “glass ceiling” for the women at agencies such as the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the U.S. Marshal's Service.

“Women held few headquarters executive leadership positions and those positions were usually leading administrative or support units rather than operational units,” the report said. “Further, we found that women did not hold many of the top leadership positions in field offices, divisions, and districts.”

"Also troubling to us was that all types of staff reported the perception that personnel decisions were driven more by 'who you know' than by merit," the report stated.

Federal law grants all employees the right to file an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) complaint if they believe they have been discriminated against or denied an equal opportunity in the workplace, the report notes, adding that the policy of the DOJ is that complaints of this nature "be promptly and thoroughly investigated and resolved without reprisal or threat or reprisal."

However, staff of all “genders, positions, supervisory status, and across agencies” had poor perceptions of the EEO process, according to the report. Staff reported a stigma of filing a complaint, fear of retaliation, a lack of confidence or trust in the EEO office and process, as well as the significant time it took to file a complaint.

Officials for the main DOJ law enforcement agencies told the inspector general that they are trying to do more to recruit and promote women.

“We found that the components were taking some steps to increase the diversity of their workforce through recruiting. However, the components have not fully identified all the barriers to recruiting women that may be specific to their respective component,” the report stated.

– Alison Spann