EEOC Rescinds Policy Against Binding Arbitration for Workers (1)

The EEOC voted 2-1 to rescind its position that mandatory arbitration agreements that keep workers’ discrimination claims out of court clash with the civil rights laws the agency enforces.

The Dec. 16 decision follows U.S. Supreme Court rulings in recent years that bolster such pacts. In a 1997 policy statement, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said using these agreements as a condition of employment could “harm both the individual civil rights claimant and the public interest in eradicating discrimination.”

The agency enforces laws that prohibit workplace discrimination based on race, sex, color, national origin, religion, disability, age, and genetic ...