^{March 2018}

Highlights of EEOC Performance & Accountability Report for FY 2017

The EEOC issued its Performance and Accountability Report for Fiscal Year 2017, which saw the lowest number of workplace discrimination charges, i.e., 84,254 charges filed with the agency since FY 2007. Retaliation comprised the majority (48.8%) of charges followed by race, disability and sex discrimination. The least amount of charges were based on genetic information, which comprised only .2% of the total charges filed. Reasonable cause determinations (i.e., determinations that reasonable cause exists to believe that a violation of law occurred) were made in only 2,909 cases comprising less than 3% of the total charges filed with the agency. In Florida, 6,858 workplace discrimination charges were filed comprising 8.1% of the total charges filed nationwide. Of the Florida charges filed, retaliation comprised the largest percentage (50.8%).

The EEOC filed 201 lawsuits in FY 2017 and secured $484 million for victims of discrimination through mediation, conciliation, settlements and litigation. The majority of lawsuits filed by the EEOC were filed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, followed by the Americans With Disabilities Act. The EEOC secured $42.4 million dollars for alleged victims of discrimination through its litigation efforts.

The EEOC’s substantive priorities for FYs 2017-2012 are: (1) eliminating barriers in recruitment and hiring; (2) protecting vulnerable workers, including immigrant and migrant workers, and underserved communities from discrimination; (3) addressing selected emerging and developing issues; (4) ensuring equal pay protections for all workers; (5) preserving access to the legal system; and (6) preventing systemic harassment. Under the emerging and developing issues priority, the EEOC will continue its focus on, among other things, “issues related to complex employment relationships and structures in the 21st century workplace, focusing specifically on temporary workers, staffing agencies, independent contractor relationships, and the on-demand economy” as well as “backlash discrimination” against those who are, or are perceived to be, of Muslim, Sikh, Arab, Middle Eastern or South Asian descent.