The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was created 54 years ago with a simple mission: Eliminate unlawful employment discrimination. Back then, all kinds of discrimination were rampant. Employers, for example, openly barred non-whites from applying for many jobs.
The laws that the EEOC enforces prohibit discrimination against a job applicant or an employee based on race, color, religion, sex (including sexual orientation and pregnancy), national origin, age, disability or genetic information.
Also prohibited is retaliation against a person who complained about discrimination or filed a charge of discrimination. The laws apply to all types of work situations, such as hiring, firing, promotions, training, wages, and benefits.
We have made progress since these laws took effect, but we still have a long way to go. Thanks to the #MeToo movement, the agency’s important work is highlighted, and people are flocking to its door. AFGE is proud to represent EEOC employees who work every day to eliminate employment discrimination.
Despite its important mission, President Trump has proposed to slash the EEOC’s historically low budget by $23.7 million in 2020, even while the agency is facing rising workloads.
Sexual harassment claims were up 13.6% in 2018, sparked by the #MeToo movement, while EEOC’s workforce dropped below 2,000 employees for the first time since before 1980. The president’s budget plan would slash another 180 positions, including mediators, judges, intake representatives, and 50 investigators.
Now that the Senate has voted to confirm Janet Dhillon as chair of the EEOC, and she has sworn in, our union’s Council 216 representing EEOC employees has issued a list of Top 10 priorities facing the new EEOC chair:
Join us in making sure the EEOC has the resources it needs to do its job. Join us today!
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