WASHINGTON — Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and other federal employment discrimination statutes, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is responsible for the rules governing the workplace discrimination complaint process for federal employees and applicants. Today, the EEOC voted to issue a proposed rule (a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking or NPRM) to revise these rules.

The Commission concluded that the current system is too slow and complicated, often resulting in federal employees and federal agencies waiting years for a decision. The Commission’s proposed rule is designed to make the process quicker, simpler, and more effective — better for both federal employees and federal agencies. The next step is for the public to provide comments on the proposed rule. The Commission welcomes the public’s feedback.

“The internal complaint process for federal employees and applicants is supposed to provide a swift, informal path to resolution. But the current system is deeply broken. It fails both federal employees and their agency employers,” said EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas. “The EEOC is committed to making the federal government work better for everyone — including its own employees and agencies. These proposed changes are about fixing what doesn’t work and making the process faster, fairer, and more straightforward. We want people to get answers quickly and without unnecessary hassle, while keeping in place all the important protections against employment discrimination in federal workplaces.”

What’s Changing Under the Proposed Rule?

• Faster Process: Instead of requiring federal employees to undergo a long counseling process before filing a complaint, federal employees and applicants will be able to file directly with their agency.
• Tailored Hearings: Hearings with EEOC administrative judges will only happen when necessary, not automatically for every case.
• Class Claims: Despite being responsible for the complaints of the 2 million person federal workforce, the EEOC is a relatively small agency and not well-suited to handling large group complaints, also known as class complaints. Class actions will be handled by federal courts, but federal employees and applicants can still use the EEOC process to start these claims and to handle related individual complaints together.
• Clearer Standards: The EEOC will clarify how complaints should be presented and how cases that involve both discrimination issues and other issues, such as mixed-complaints unique to the federal sector, are handled.
• Attorney Fees: The rules governing when and how attorney fees are awarded will be updated, including how market rates for attorney work in the EEO process are determined.
• Transparency and Accountability: To fully implement the Cummings Act, a law passed by Congress in 2020, the EEOC will increase transparency by posting more information online about complaint outcomes, disciplinary actions, and related data, and will ensure that the head of each agency’s EEO program operates independently.

What Stays the Same under the Proposed Rule?

Federal employees and applicants continue to have the right to:

• File a complaint, engage in alternative dispute resolution, and settle complaints.
• Receive a final decision from their agency after investigation.
• Appeal the agency’s decision to the EEOC and receive fresh review, also called “de novo” review, from the EEOC.
• Take their case to federal court.

The proposed rule is prospective and would not affect complaints currently being processed. In addition, nothing about the proposed rule affects how the EEOC handles discrimination complaints involving employees and applicants in the private sector.

How Can You Share Your Thoughts?

You can read the proposed rule immediately on the EEOC’s website. Once the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, anyone can comment online for 30 days at https://www.regulations.gov/. Consistent with the Administrative Procedures Act, the EEOC will review all public comments and relevant data before making a final decision.

The EEOC is the sole federal agency authorized to investigate and litigate against businesses and other private sector employers for violations of federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. For public sector employers, the EEOC shares jurisdiction with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The EEOC also is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s employment antidiscrimination effort. More information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov.