EEOC Watching for Workplace Bias Incited by Israel-Hamas War

The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is paying close attention to workplace discrimination based on religion, race, and national origin driven by the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, according to Karla Gilbride, the civil rights agency’s new general counsel.

At Gilbride’s first press event as the agency’s top lawyer Monday, she said the EEOC has received reports from both workers and advocacy organizations for Jewish, Muslim, and Arab communities of an increase in employment discrimination complaints by members of these groups.

The agency has signaled interest in addressing discrimination in response to “local, national or global events,” including historical prejudices, in its newest strategic enforcment plan released in September 2023. Gilbride, a Democrat who joined the commission in October, will have the power to steer EEOC’s litigation program based on that playbook by bringing cases on the commission’s behalf, recommending cases for the commissioners to consider, and providing guidance to the EEOC’s field offices.

Following reports of more incidents tied to the current Middle East conflict, the EEOC has been monitoring charges and other inquiries to the commission about related workplace bias, according to Gilbride.

“We’re reviewing that data to get a better handle on whether we at EEOC are recognizing an uptick in discrimination on the basis of religion or national origin affecting Jewish, Muslim, and Arab communities or people who might be perceived as belonging to those communities even if they did not actually belong to those communities,” she said.

Following the Oct. 7 attack on Israel and the ensuing retaliation against Hamas, some private companies have withdrawn job offers to individuals who published comments criticizing the actions of parties to the conflict. Law firm Winston & Strawn, for instance, rescinded a job offer to the president of New York University’s student bar association for publishing comments blaming Israel’s policy toward Palestine for the October attacks.

While the agency will be evaluating complaints on a case-by-case basis, Gilbride said that major global events such as 9/11 have in the past led to increased instances of workplace discrimination.

“That’s why this is a priority in our strategic enforcement plan to be responsive when these things occur, and we’re working on doing that in real time right now,” she said.

Other Focuses

Gilbride, a civil rights litigator by trade, is the first permanent general counsel the EEOC has had in place since March 2021.

She’ll also be working with an EEOC that has recently broken its partisan deadlock, and now has a 3-2 majority of Democratic commissioners. The five-member commission votes on major lawsuits the agency will bring as well as amicus briefs it will file.

Gilbride said her priorities as the agency’s top litigator include removing barriers that prevent access to the workplace such as employment tests and screening procedures aided by algorithms and artificial intelligence, as well as job qualification standards that tend to screen out people with disabilities or people of color.

Bringing cases dealing with areas such as AI that affect a “single individual or a small group of individuals” but “speak to an important and developing area of law” are important for the commission to make a big strategic impact with limited resources, said Gilbride.

She also said “litigators around the country stand ready to enforce” the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, which went into effect in June 2023 and provides legal protections and requires accommodations for workers who are expecting a baby or have pregnancy-related medical conditions . The agency published draft regulations on the PWFA in August and the final regulations are currently under interagency review.

As its new general counsel, Gilbride may also hold sway as the EEOC deals with growing legal attacks on corporate diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the aftermath of the US Supreme Court’s 2023 Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard decision.

While the general counsel’s office doesn’t currently have any litigation underway pertaining to workplace DEIA programs, Gilbride said her office agrees with commissioners that have spoken out in favor of lawful DEIA efforts following the Supreme Court ruling.