Legal Ease By Richard D. Alaniz


In 2011, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) re- ceived a record-setting num- ber of charges from those claiming employment dis- crimination: 99,947 in fiscal year 2011, compared with 99,922 in 2010 and an in- crease from 82,792 in 2008. But what do these na- tional statistics mean for employers? With 15 districts covering the 50 states and U.S. territories, it has been difficult for employers to glean much information about how the EEOC’s priorities and actions could affect them directly.


Fortunately, that has now changed.


For the first time, the EEOC has revealed how many discrimination charges and which types of charges have been filed in each state and territory since 2009. The information is available on the EEOC website


at


statistics/enforcement/, and the EEOC has pledged to update the data every year. Now, instead of just knowing that the


EEOC filed 37,334 retaliation claims in 2011, companies can find out exactly how many of those specific types of charges were filed in states where they have sites and offices. Employers in Texas now know that their state led the nation in discrimination charges last year. Those in California can learn their state had the second highest number of religious dis- crimination cases, while Georgia had one of the highest rates of sex discrimination charges.


“For the second year in a row, the EEOC received a record number of new charges of discrimination,” said EEOC Chair Jacqueline Berrien in a statement. “Nevertheless, the hard work of our em- ployees, combined with increased invest- ments in training, technology and staffing


22


EEOC Releases Data on Discrimination Charges;


What Should Employers Do With What They Know?


in 2009 and 2010, and strategic manage- ment of existing resources made 2011 a year of extraordinary achievements for the EEOC.” Across the country, retaliation claims


are the most common types of charges the EEOC files, and age and disability claims also constitute a large percentage. According to the EEOC, race and sex dis- crimination charges declined throughout the country last year.


http://www1.eeoc.gov/eeoc/


Nonetheless, employers now have more information than ever before about EEOC discrimination charges. This infor- mation can help companies identify the EEOC’s priorities in their states, then tar- get areas where they may need to increase awareness and training in order to insulate themselves from potential lawsuits.


State-by-State Statistics


With the state-level data, the EEOC lists information for a variety of differ- ent types of discrimination charges: race, sex, national origin, religion, color, retali- ation, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 retaliation, age, disability, Equal Pay Act of 1963 and the Genetic Infor- mation Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA). The EEOC website also includes a


spreadsheet for 2009, 2010 and 2011 that list the total number of charges received in each state, and how that compares to charges filed nationwide. The EEOC


also breaks down the number of specific charges filed in each state, the total number filed across the coun- try, the percentage of each state’s charges as a total of charges filed across the country and the percentage of each category of charges as part of the state’s total. The more em- ployers know about the EEOC’s priori-


ties and actions, the better prepared they can be to head off problems and prevent EEOC discrimination charges.


Understand Priorities in Your State


Employers should review the charge


information that the EEOC has made available to understand exactly how many and what types of charges are being brought in the areas where the company has sites and offices.


Companies should compare the sta-


tistics to any charges that the EEOC has brought against it. If a company has a sig- nificant number of charges in state where such claims are fairly rare, employers need to understand why this is happening and how to prevent it in the future. When reviewing the data, employ- ers should be sure to consult with ex- perts in HR and their attorneys. There may be a variety of reasons that more types of charges are filed in one state than another. Some of it may be popula- tion based, since states with more people and businesses are likely to face more en- forcement activity from the EEOC. The economy could also play a role. In states where more businesses are struggling and unemployment is high, employees and former employees may be more likely to pursue charges of perceived discrimi- nation. Some types of industries, which


September 2012


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