Good Day,

I am currently preparing my position paper and response to an EEOC charge. Does anybody know if the EEOC will accept supporting documents on CD or DVD? I have several thousand e-mail messages to support my position and I would like to avoid the associated labor and printing costs.

Thank you in advance.

Kind regards,
Chuck

So much depends on the person assigned to the case.  I’m in Denver and had CD accepted by one EEOC agent and rejected by another (2 different cases).  And the one who rejected it waited 4 months before letting us know and then gave us a few days to pull all papers together supporting our case.  Lesson I learned is it’s best to ask the assigned agent.

Linda Konstan
Sensible HR Consulting LLC

Good morning Chuck,

You should have an investigator assigned to the case; why not call and ask how they would prefer to receive this information.  It will give you the opportunity to connect with this individual, which I have always found to be very beneficial.

Unless you have consulted with legal counsel, and he/she has given the green light to provide the supporting documentation, I would not provide it.  The position statement (along with supporting documentation) can later be used as evidence against the company should actual litigation result following the EEOC proceedings.

In truth, the evidentiary concerns have become so heightened in recent years that it is not advisable for company HR representatives to submit position statements or supporting docs.  That is a task that is best left to inside or outside counsel.

Kevin
Washington, D.C.

I totally agree with the last writer from DC—Under NO circumstance should you turn over thousands of emails without review and advice of counsel.  In this circumstance, I would agree also with the others who suggest talking with your assigned contact and letting them know that you may have additional documents and as if they have a preference for a certain format over another.  But, to the extent that you produce documents, I would keep it to a minimum and would only produce them once your legal counsel has reviewed and approves the production—no matter how small or seemingly insignificant.

Cursory review of recent job postings for the EEOC show that they are hiring statisticians and other quantitative social scientists to review and, for lack of a subtle way to put it, FIND discrimination in the supporting documents you submit with position statements. Submitting thousands of emails sounds almost like professional negligence in the current climate. I deal with the EEOC and their state law counterparts on a daily basis. The previous poster that recommended a simple phone call is spot on, the human connection with investigators is very helpful (though I recommend backing everything agreed to orally in writing).

EEOC charges are free discovery!!! Unless you want to extend the resources to be VERY sure those emails don’t contain anything that could be construed as discriminatory, I would just summarize the point you are making with them and hold on to them.

Good Weekend to all!
David

I agree with everything that has been said in previous posts. Furthermore, a summary at this point will suffice and will in fact allow you to highlight and emphasize things that would otherwise be lost in thousands of emails.  A summary will allow the investigator to quickly grasp your point without the need to wade through all those documents (whether in paper or CD format).  If you have a very few that are particularly important, on point, or highly illustrative of your position, you could attach them as examples.  If the investigator really wants to see the thousands in order to reach a conclusion, the investigator can ask for them, at which point you can discuss the format in which they will be submitted.  However, nothing should be submitted without a careful review, preferably by counsel.

Definitely speak with counsel before producing anything.  Remember, how you respond to an EEOC charge should be done with an eye toward your strategy in the event of subsequent litigation.  So it’s usually not a good idea to give away the baby with the bathwater at this stage.  I never reveal my whole hand to the EEOC - I only give enough to support my position (and, of course, comply with specific requests from the EEOC).  Also, keep in mind that what you may view as exculpatory emails are often subject to other interpretations by third parties who read them.  So you may actually end up fueling the flames despite intentions otherwise.  And since non-legally trained managers and employees are the authors of many of the emails, they don’t always take time to consider what they’ve written and the precise words they used.  As you can see from most of the postings, caution is the word of the day.

Good luck.

Thanks to all for your great replies and assistance.