TYA24: Ideal to Real —
Federal and State Litigation + Regulation

EEOC Enforcement + Litigation

Trends at a Glance

• 73,485 total charges.
  This four-year high follows six years of declining charges.
• Religious discrimination claims were 18.8 percent of the total (up from the previous reporting year’s 3.4 percent).
  This was the only category of claims to increase in any significant way.
• The number of disability claims increased from 22,842 to 25,004.
  However, the percentage of disability claims to total claims decreased from 37.2 to 34 percent.
• Florida had the largest percentage of all EEOC discrimination charges in the country (7.3 percent).
  The other states (in alpha order) with the highest number of EEOC charges were California, Georgia, Illinois, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania.
   

2023 Lawsuit Filings

• EEOC fiscal year 2023 lawsuit filings include 25 systemic lawsuits: Almost double the number filed in each of the past three fiscal years and the largest number of systemic filings in the past five years.
• Systemic discrimination lawsuits are an area of focus for the EEOC and target a “pattern or practice, policy and/or class where the discrimination has broad impact on an industry, profession, company, or geographic location.”
   

EEOC Strategic Enforcement Plan: FY 2024–2028

Intended to focus and coordinate the EEOC’s work over multiple fiscal years to have a sustained impact in advancing the Commission’s mission, the most recent version of the plan:

• Expands the categories of workers considered to be vulnerable and underserved to include:
  • Those with intellectual/developmental disabilities.
  • Those with mental health related disabilities.
  • Those with arrest or conviction records.
  • LGBTQIA+ individuals.
  • Temporary workers.
  • Older workers.
  • Those with low-wage jobs.
  • Those with literacy/English proficiency issues.
• Recognizes employers’ increasing use of technology (including AI) in job advertisements, recruiting and hiring and other employment decisions.
• Updates emerging and developing issues priority to include protecting workers affected by:
  • Pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions.
  • Employment discrimination associated with the long-term effects of COVID-19.
  • Technology-related employment discrimination.
• Focuses on potential impediments to access to the legal system from overly broad waivers, releases, non-disclosure agreements or non-disparagement agreements.

Non-Compete Agreements