EEOC Diversity Data Move Hurts Anti-Bias Enforcement, States Say

State and local workplace civil rights agencies say a new EEOC policy that limits their access to employer diversity data violates federal law and hinders their ability to carry out anti-bias enforcement activities—an argument that could be a prelude to a legal challenge.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s policy contradicts specific data-sharing mandates in Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act as well as the law’s requirement that the federal government “consult and coordinate” with relevant agencies when changing record-keeping protocols, a group of state and local fair employment practice agencies said in a letter to the EEOC. The ...