Total Articles: 29
EEOC on 2011: Record Number of Charges Filed, $51 Million More Obtained
On January 25, 2012, the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reported that it received a record number of discrimination charges in 2011. During that same period, the EEOC also noted it obtained a record amount of relief for discrimination claimants.
The EEOC's New Five-Year Strategic Plan
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has issued a draft copy of its Strategic Plan for fiscal years 2012 – 2016. The Congressionally-required plan discusses 13 benchmarks that the EEOC will use to measure how well it achieves its three main performance goals: (1) combating employment discrimination through strategic law enforcement; (2) preventing employment discrimination through education and outreach; and (3) delivering excellent service through effective systems, updated technology, and a skilled and diverse workforce. According to the EEOC, the revised plan will require "significant changes in the agency's approach to fulfilling its mission."
EEOC Outlines New Four-Year Strategic Plan
With relatively little fanfare, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently posted its Draft Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2012-2016. The plan, which is required every four fiscal years from each government department, both reflects the current economic climate and provides some insight into where the EEOC will focus its efforts in upcoming years. Indeed, the plan acknowledges what many employers and employment attorneys have been saying for years - that during an economic downturn comes "an increase in overall charges [of discrimination] as more people are laid-off." Indeed, in 2010 and 2011 each, the EEOC received just shy of 100,000 individual private sector charges of discrimination, including a record 99,947 individual charges in 2011. Against this influx of charges, Congress recently cut the EEOC's budget for the upcoming fiscal year - something the Commission does not expect to change anytime soon. The new plan assumes that the EEOC's funding will remain at its 2012 levels through 2016.
Business Is Booming . . . for the EEOC, Anyway
Many employers continued to face financial challenges in 2011. But business is booming for at least one group. The EEOC received a record number of complaints last year--almost 100,000 in all.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has completed its annual Performance and Accountability Report
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has completed its annual Performance and Accountability Report for 2011 and states that intake, relief obtained, and charges resolved hit record highs.
Private Sector EEOC Charges Reached Record High in 2011
According to the newly-released enforcement and litigation statistics, private sector employees filed a record number of charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in 2011. A total of 99,947 charges of employment discrimination were filed with the EEOC in the 12-month period ending on September 30, 2011.
EEOC Reports Record Number of Discrimination Charges
Executive Summary: According to information released by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), in 2011 the agency received a record number of discrimination charges and obtained a record amount of relief for discrimination claimants.
Tell the EEOC What You Think
The EEOC is seeking public comments on its strategic plan.
Annual Report on EEOC Developments – Fiscal Year 2011
Over the past fiscal year, Littler has monitored various developments related to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Specifically, we have monitored EEOC lawsuits, subpoena enforcement actions, EEOC settlements, regulatory developments and related activities and court opinions in which the EEOC has been a party.
THE EEOC: ANNUAL RECORDS, SYSTEMIC DISCRIMINATION AND OTHER ISSUES TO WATCH IN 2012
In a November 15, 2011, press release, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) touted a number of records achieved during the past 12 months. Of note:
EEOC Receives Record Number of Charges of Discrimination and Secures Highest Amount of Damages in FY 2011
Charges of employment discrimination filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) hit another record level in 2011. According to the EEOC’s recently released annual Performance and Accountability Report, the EEOC received 99,947 charges of employment discrimination in fiscal year 2011 (Oct. 1, 2010, through Sept. 30, 2011), which is the largest number of charges ever filed in a fiscal year with the EEOC. Last fiscal year, 99,922 charges were filed with the agency.
Senate Confirms Constance Barker for Additional EEOC Term
On September 27, the Senate unanimously approved the nomination of Constance Barker to serve as a member of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for another five-year term. First nominated by former President George W. Bush in 2008, Barker is one of two Republican members serving on the five-member Commission. Other members of the EEOC include fellow Republican Victoria Lipnic, as well as Chair Jacqueline Berrien (D), Stuart Ishimaru (D) and Chai Feldblum (D).
Fair Employment Opportunity Act would prohibit hiring discrimination against unemployed job seekers.
In February of this year, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) held a public meeting to examine the practices by employers of considering only currently employed candidates for job vacancies and excluding currently unemployed persons from job applicant pools. A recent follow-up report by the National Employment Law Project , a national advocacy organization for employment rights of lower-wage workers, focused on what it called “the persistent practice” of excluding candidates based on their employment status. In response to this report and others like it, a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives in June that will make it illegal for employers and employment agencies to screen out unemployed job seekers. On August 2, the Senate followed suit with an as-yet unpublished bill with the same purpose. The proposed legislation has been named the “Fair Employment Opportunity Act” and prohibits consideration of an individual’s status as “unemployed” in screening for or filling positions.
6 ways to avoid being the EEOC's next hiring "test case"
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently held a meeting with "a battery of experts" on disparate treatment in hiring. According to the EEOC, hiring discrimination continues to run rampant.
"Notorious Nine" mistakes by employers in dealing with the EEOC
Everybody on the employer side likes to pick on the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the temptation is even greater now that its chair has taken such an aggressive stance on issues like pre-employment credit and background checks. However, employers occasionally shoot themselves in the foot (feet?) with the agency by making mistakes that only compound their problems. If you can avoid making these nine mistakes, chances are good that you (and your company) will be on the list of employers to whom the EEOC gives the benefit of the doubt – a very good place to be.
Recent EEOC Lawsuits Suggest a Prudent New Year's Resolution for HR Professionals
Recent EEOC Lawsuits Suggest a Prudent New Year's Resolution for HR Professionals
Discrimination Charge Filings Hit Record Levels for 2010; Recoveries for Charging Parties Also Sets Record
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) earlier this week released its annual report of charges filed with the agency. The results confirm what many employers and their employment counsel already know: discrimination charges filed with the EEOC are up. In fact, a record 99,922 charges were filed during the EEOCs fiscal year 2010 (which ended September 30, 2010). While these numbers may not be especially surprising given the struggling economy and high unemployment rates, what is surprising is that for the first time in the EEOCs history, retaliation surpassed race discrimination as the most frequent claim (36,258 vs. 35,890). Since the agencys inception in 1965, race had been the most prevalent claim. Likewise, disability (25,165), age, (23,264), and religion (3,790) charges also saw increases. Click here for the full report by category.
Charges of Job Discrimination against Employers Hit Record High in FY 2010, EEOC Reports
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has confirmed our suspicions. Individuals are bringing more charges of workplace discrimination against their private-sector employers than ever before. The EEOC has reported that it received nearly 100,000 workplace discrimination charges in its fiscal year 2010 (ending September 30, 2010). The number of charges filed (99,922) is more than seven percent higher than the year before.
EEOC Statistics Reveal Jump in Discrimination Charges.
It should come as a surprise to no one that the recently-released charge statistics from the EEOC reveal a record-breaking number of charges of discrimination filed against employers in 2010. The continued bleak economy and resulting layoffs in 2009 and 2010 are the most obvious reasons for the increased charges.
The EEOC Celebrates Its 45 Anniversary With Seminar.
On Wednesday, December 8, 2010, the EEOC will commemorate its 45th anniversary by hosting a public seminar discussing its continued efforts to eliminate workplace discrimination. The free event will be held at the National Constitution Center, Kirby Auditorium, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
EEOC Appeals $4.5 Million Fee Award to Employer in Harassment Suit Brought by Agency
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is appealing an order requiring it to pay approximately $4.5 million of an employers attorneys fees and expenses because, in the trial judges opinion, the agencys actions in pursuing a multi-victim sexual harassment lawsuit were unreasonable, contrary to the procedure outlined by Title VII and imposed an unnecessary burden upon [the defendant] and the court. EEOC v. CRST Van Expedited, Inc., No. 07-CV-95-LRR (N.D. Iowa Feb. 9, 2010). On November 18, 2010, the federal appeals court in St. Louis heard oral argument in the agencys appeal.
Staying Out Of The EEOC's Line Of Fire.
The last place you want to see your company listed is on the EEOC's website under "Press Releases." Hospitality employers continue to make this list with reports of high-dollar settlements of discrimination and harassment allegations.
Discrimination Charges Filed With EEOC Remain at Record Levels.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reported that it a record number of discrimination charges in FY 2009, the second-highest number in its history. Race and sex discrimination continued to be the most frequently filed, but religion, disability and retaliation claims all reached new highs. EEOC investigates and enforces claims of discrimination under Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).
EEOC Proposes to Fix Its Broken System [Insert Snarky Comment Here].
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued proposed regulations for ways to improve how discrimination complaints are processed. Ill beg your pardon if the first thought that comes to mind when I hear this is, Improve it for whom, exactly?. The sarcasm didnt stop there. The more I read, the more questions I have, each tinted with at least a hint of snarkiness. (The snarky comments are denoted in blue).
Job Bias Claims Rise 9% in 2007: Discrimination Charges Highest in 5 Years.
In a March 5, 20008 press release, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) reported that it received a total of 82,792 private sector discrimination charge filings last fiscal year. That number was the highest volume of incoming charges since 2002 and the largest annual increase (9%) since the early 1990s.
The EEOC is Partying Like Its 2002?
The EEOC recently released its statistics for 2007 and the news was not good for those hoping for a slowdown in EEOC enforcement activity. In fact, 2007 saw an almost double-digit percentage growth from the previous year in charges filed at just under 83,000, returning to a level not seen since 2002 when there were almost 84,500 charges filed with the EEOC.
EEOC What's Ahead For 2008?
Recently, Naomi Earp, Chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, shared the Agencys enforcement focuses. At the EEOC Technical Assistance Program seminar in Hampton, Virginia in September 2007, Earp gave employers a heads up on issues of particular concern to the Agency in the coming months. Here is a brief summary of what we can expect in 2008.
EEOC's Suit For Monetary Relief Barred (pdf).
Court finds workers not entitled to "two bites at the apple".
EEOC Is Gearing Up for High-Impact "Systemic" Litigation (pdf).
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
has announced plans to begin emphasizing multipleplaintiff
cases as part of a new push to pursue highimpact
litigation.
