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Helena I. Poch Ciechanowski Patricia Tsipras
August 23, 2023
Yesterday, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) adopted its strategic plan for fiscal years 2022-2026, which describes the key values, objectives, and focal points for fulfillment of the EEOC’s mission to prevent and remedy unlawful employment discrimination and advance equal employment opportunities. Implementation of the EEOC’s strategic plan will begin immediately. As required by the Government Performance and Results Act Modernization Act, the complete EEOC Strategic Plan is available for review on the EEOC’s official government website, which can be accessed here.
The EEOC derives its authority from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), and national origin. Over the last 60 years, the EEOC’s provenance has been expanded to include workplace anti-discrimination laws such as the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 (PDA), the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), Titles I and V of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), Sections 501 and 505 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title II of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA), and the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA). Collectively, these laws proscribe employment discrimination and harassment against individuals on the basis of their race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, or genetic information; prohibit retaliation against someone who complains about employment discrimination, files a charge of discrimination, or participates in an employment discrimination proceeding; and protect the privacy of employees’ and applicants’ genetic, medical, and other health-related information. The majority of the laws enforced by the EEOC apply to public and private employers with at least 15 employees.
Employers who take the time to understand the EEOC’s strategic emphasis will be better able to concentrate their efforts and marshal their resources to address the issues that are most important to the EEOC (and those that are most likely to garner EEOC enforcement measures).
The EEOC’s strategic plan’s main goals and objectives are:
The strategic plan sets forth numerous strategies and specific annual performance measurements for each of these goals and objectives. Key provisions and examples are described below:
The EEOC continues to prioritize its Systemic Program, which is an initiative to highlight cases involving a pattern, practice, or policy that has a broad impact on an industry, profession, geographic region, or a particular entity (e.g., systemic discrimination). Examples of potentially problematic policies and practices previously identified by the EEOC include:
The EEOC’s strategic plan aims to better monitor conciliation (settlement) agreements and litigation resolutions to ensure that they contain targeted, equitable relief, including specific, non-monetary measures, designed to remedy discrimination, and that the agreements are being followed. Examples of these types of remedies include customized training, promulgation of new policies to deter discrimination in the future, and external monitoring of employer conduct after the EEOC makes a finding of discrimination.
The EEOC seeks to enhance its capacity to conduct investigations, including by training field staff and developing additional resources for their use.
The EEOC also seeks to improve its service to the public by, among other things, better utilizing technology, expanding access to intake services, and making more intake interview appointments available.
The EEOC also plans to expand its education and outreach programs, with a goal of deterring discrimination by making the general public more aware of anti-discrimination laws and their rights and responsibilities in the workplace. The plan also seeks the promotion of best practices that employers can adopt to prevent discrimination in their workplaces in the first place.
In connection with these efforts, the EEOC hopes to amplify its impact on diverse populations, vulnerable communities, and small, new, and disadvantaged or underserved employers by leveraging technology, analytical tools, and innovative outreach strategies. Success in this area will be measured on a qualitative basis (e.g., how well the measures work) as opposed to a quantitative basis (e.g., how many partnership opportunities were developed).
Finally, the strategic plan sets forth an organizational goal of continually improving the EEOC’s performance through investment in its personnel, information technology, infrastructure, and financial health. Specific strategies include focusing on recruitment, retention, and development of employees, performance management efforts, expanding diversity, supporting employee collaboration and innovation, encouraging use of technology, and prioritizing fiscal responsibility.
Coming Soon: Separate from the strategic plan, the EEOC is also in the process of reviewing and updating its Strategic Enforcement Plan (“SEP”) for fiscal years 2023-2027. Unlike the strategic plan, which provides broad objectives and measurements based on the EEOC’s mission and values, the SEP identifies and establishes the EEOC’s specific substantive area priorities for enforcement and delineates the strategies/activities that are expected to foster a sustained impact on the advancement of equal employment opportunity.
This article is designed to provide one perspective regarding recent legal developments, and is not intended to serve as legal advice. Always consult an attorney with specific legal issues.
