EEOC Issues Itself a Report Card for FY2013

On December 16, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued its Performance Report for fiscal year 2013. The Report addresses the extent to which the EEOC has been able to achieve the goals it set in its 2013 Strategic Enforcement Plan (“SEP”) which we have previously discussed. According to the Report:

Fewer employee are filing discrimination charges with the EEOC. The EEOC received 93,727 private sector charges in FY 2013 – 6,000 fewer than in the previous 3 years.

The EEOC is not resolving charges as quickly. The EEOC resolved 97,252 charges, 14,000 fewer than the previous year, which the Report attributes to “the decline in staffing and resources . . . including the impact from furloughs.” The decrease in funding was likely also attributable to a record $4.7 million sanction issued against the EEOC for litigation abuses in a case against CRST Trucking – a sanction which the EEOC chose not to appeal.

EEOC recovered record sums for complaining employees. The EEOC recovered $372.1 million - a $6.7 million increase from 2012, and an all time record for the EEOC – through informal efforts.

EEOC continues its use of class action lawsuits against employers. Of the 131 lawsuits filed by EEOC in FY 2013, 32% were class actions alleging systemic and non-systemic discrimination. Resolution of EEOC initiated lawsuits netted an additional $39 million in recoveries.

Consistent with its SEP, the EEOC continues to pursue systemic discrimination - i.e., uniform employment practices which discriminate equally against a class of all employees. EEOC initiated 300 systemic investigations, netting an additional $40 million in recoveries.

Totaled up, the EEOC redistributed over $451 million in wealth for FY 2013, not counting the sanctions it has been ordered to pay.