WASHINGTON -- As part of a broader effort to improve the effectiveness of its operations, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today changes to its regulations governing the procedures for federal employee discrimination complaints. The changes, published today in the Federal Register, apply to federal employees and applicants for employment in the federal government as well as to the agencies that employ and hire them.

"Finalizing the changes to the federal sector regulations has been one of my highest priorities since assuming leadership of the Commission," said EEOC Chairwoman Ida L. Castro. "The Commission has broken new ground in making the federal EEO complaint process more efficient, expedient, and fair for federal employees and agencies alike. In particular, we have improved and streamlined the process by eliminating unnecessary layers of review and addressing perceptions of unfairness in the system."

While the substantive legal protections for federal employees are the same as those for workers in private industry, the procedures for resolving complaints in the federal government differ significantly. The rule approved by the Commission updates and improves the process which governs how discrimination claims of federal employees are handled administratively. The major changes include:

• A requirement that agencies institute Alternate Dispute Resolution programs, which will be available to informally resolve disputes both before and after formal complaints are filed.
• The elimination of agencies' authority to issue final decisions where there has been a hearing before an administrative judge. Instead, agencies will issue orders stating whether they will fully implement the judge's decision. If agencies choose not to fully implement the decision, they must file an appeal with the EEOC.
• The incorporation of provisions which will streamline the process by reducing the fragmentation of cases, eliminating multiple appeals in single cases, and updating the grounds for dismissal of cases.
• A new "Offer of Resolution" provision, modeled on the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which will encourage settlements. Under this provision, an agency may make a settlement offer to a complaining party and, if the complainant does not accept the offer and does not recover at least as much as the agency offered, the agency will avoid further liability for attorney's fees and costs.
• Reforms to the treatment of class actions, making it more feasible for class claims to be brought and resolved in the administrative process.
• Streamlining of the second level of appellate review.

The regulations will take effect 120 days after publication in the Federal Register, and will apply to pending cases. EEOC will also issue revisions to its Management Directive 110 to assist both agencies and federal employees in better understanding their rights and responsibilities.

The text of the regulations will be available on EEOC's web site at www.eeoc.gov shortly after its publication in the Federal Register.

EEOC enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, and national origin; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which prohibits discrimination against individuals 40 years of age or older; sections of the Civil Rights Act of 1991; the Equal Pay Act; Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in the private sector and state and local governments; and the Rehabilitation Act's prohibitions against disability discrimination in the federal government.

 

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Updated/Reviewed: 26 Apr 2010