Newsroom

PRESS RELEASE
12-31-08

EEOC Settles Suit for Discrimination Based on Religion and National Origin

NEW YORK – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced that Merrill Lynch, the international financial services firm, has agreed to pay $1,550,000 to settle a discrimination lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act on behalf of an Iranian Muslim former worker who was fired due to his religion and national

PRESS RELEASE
12-31-08

Appellate Court Declines to Review Jury Verdict in EEOC Religious Bias Case On Behalf of Jehovah’s Witnesses

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced that a federal appeals court has declined to review a jury verdict in an EEOC religious discrimination case against telecommunications giant AT&T. The decision by the U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upholds the jury finding that AT&T

PRESS RELEASE
12-30-04

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Northwest Airlines, Inc. (Northwest) today announced the settlement of a lawsuit under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). EEOC's lawsuit, filed on April 25, 2001, alleged that Northwest excluded applicants for airport ramp equipment service employee and cleaner positions if they had epilepsy or insulin-dependent diabetes. Northwest specifically denies the allegations and believes that its

PRESS RELEASE
12-3-08

Federal Agency Charged Kovacevich 5 Farms Refused to Hire Female Farmworkers

FRESNO, Calif. – Kovacevich 5 Farms, a Tulare County grower of table grapes, has agreed to pay $1,680,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging that the company refused to hire women, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today.

After investigating charges filed by six female job applicants turned away by the Kovacevich 5

PRESS RELEASE
12-3-07

Agency Highlights ‘Best Practices’ for Employers to Prevent Job Discrimination

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued an extensive fact sheet on the application of federal anti-discrimination laws to employer tests and other selection procedures to screen applicants for hire and employees for promotion. The new technical assistance document is available on the agency’s web site at www.eeoc.gov/policy/docs/factemployment_procedures.html

The fact sheet describes

PRESS RELEASE
12-28-05

EEOC Says General Manager Referred to Older Employees as 'Worthless and Ineffective'

NEW YORK – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today submitted a consent decree for court approval to settle an age discrimination lawsuit against Austrian Airlines (Austrian) for a half million dollars and other relief on behalf of William Thoman, former director of sales for the Americas, because of his age (then 51)

PRESS RELEASE
12-28-04

Job Offer Withdrawn After Pregnancy Revealed, Suit Charged

MILWAUKEE - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has settled, for $450,000, its lawsuit against Johnson International, Inc., a global financial services company owned by the S.C. Johnson family of Racine, Wis. The EEOC suit alleged that the company, now known as Johnson Financial Group, a member of the "Johnson Family of Companies," discriminated against Rae Ann

PRESS RELEASE
12-27-99

*** Agency's Pending Inventory of Private Sector Charges Slashed to 15-Year Low ***

WASHINGTON - Ida L. Castro, Chairwoman of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), today issued the agency's Accomplishments Report for Fiscal Year 1999. In addition to highlighting a dramatic reduction in EEOC's pending inventory (backlog) of private sector charges, the report touts the agency's implementation of a national mediation program and small

PRESS RELEASE
12-27-00

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued new enforcement guidance clarifying how the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 apply to contingent workers - those workers placed in job assignments by staffing firms, such as temporary employment agencies or contract firms. The guidance explains that these workers frequently qualify as the employees of both the

PRESS RELEASE
12-26-07

Implementation of Final Rule Ensures Age Bias Law is No Barrier to Employer Insurance

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced the publication of a final rule allowing employers that provide retiree health benefits to continue the longstanding practice of coordinating those benefits with Medicare (or comparable state health benefits) without violating the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The regulation, which

PRESS RELEASE
12-23-02

PHOENIX - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced it has settled a pregnancy discrimination lawsuit against retail giant Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., based in Bentonville, Arkansas, for $220,000 in damages and other relief for its failure to hire a female applicant due to her pregnancy.

Under the Consent Decree filed in Arizona District Court (EEOC v. WalMart CIV 94-465 TUC WDB), Wal-Mart will pay

PRESS RELEASE
12-23-02

NEW YORK - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced the settlement of a sexual harassment lawsuit for $1.79 million against Norwalk, Conn.- based South Beach Beverage Company, Inc. (SoBe), a division of PepsiCo, Inc.

The EEOC's lawsuit, Case No. CIV-02-10136, in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, filed simultaneously with the Consent Decree, charged that a class of female

PRESS RELEASE
12-22-97

WASHINGTON -- Continuing in its efforts of technical assistance, outreach, and education, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released the Task Force Report on "Best" Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policies, Programs, and Practices in the Private Sector. The report, which is intended to offer assistance to all employers and especially to smaller and mid-sized companies, identifies "best" EEO practices of companies around the

PRESS RELEASE
12-22-05

Repositioning Plan will Improve Customer Service and Increase Efficiency

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will begin implementing a plan on Jan. 1 to reposition the Commission’s field structure to enhance the agency’s enforcement presence, improve customer service and public access, and increase efficiency.

Under the plan, no jobs will be lost, no offices will close, and two new offices will be opened

PRESS RELEASE
12-22-04

EEOC and Plaintiff's Counsel Score Victory for White Senior Manager Retaliated Against for Lodging Discrimination Complaint

ORLANDO, Fla. - In a trial ending today, a jury in Federal District Court for the Middle District of Florida in Orlando returned a $1.57 million dollar verdict in favor of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Ted Maines and his private counsel, Jill Schwartz & Associates, P.A., in

PRESS RELEASE
12-21-05

Agency Issues Performance and Accountability Report

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has received an “unqualified opinion” on its 2005 financial statements, the second consecutive year in which independent auditors have performed an extensive examination of the EEOC’s financial records and reported a clean fiscal bill of health.

The audit report is a focus of the EEOC’s Performance and Accountability Report (PAR) which

PRESS RELEASE
12-21-05

Judge Says EEOC Ability to Seek Money for Expelled Partners is Derived from Public Interest

CHICAGO - U.S. District Judge James B. Zagel today, for the second time, denied a request of Sidley Austin Brown & Wood, the giant Chicago-based international law firm, that the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) be barred from obtaining monetary relief in the agency's class age discrimination lawsuit for attorneys

PRESS RELEASE
12-20-07

EEOC Said Apprenticeship Test Discriminated Against Hundreds of Black Workers

CINCINNATI – Ford Motor Co., along with two related companies and a national union, will pay $1.6 million and provide other remedial relief to a class of nearly 700 African Americans to settle a major race discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

The EEOC had charged

PRESS RELEASE
12-2-08

Company Refused to Hire Men into Weight Loss Counselor and Other Jobs, Agency Alleged

BALTIMORE – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today that it has resolved its pattern or practice sex discrimination lawsuit against LA Weight Loss Centers, Inc., (renamed Pure Weight Loss, Inc., in early 2007), for $20 million and other significant relief.

According to the EEOC's suit (WDQ-02-CV-648), filed in the

PRESS RELEASE
12-2-03

Commission Receives Latest Mediation Study, Posts New Material on Web Site

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today held a public meeting to examine its National Mediation Program, the workplace benefits of mediation, and employer participation in EEOC mediation. During the meeting, representatives of corporate America, the private bar, and professionals in dispute resolution and human resources encouraged employers to participate in EEOC

PRESS RELEASE
12-2-02

New Compliance Manual Section, Web Page and Fact Sheet Address Wide Range of Issues

WASHINGTON - Cari M. Dominguez, Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), today announced the issuance of updated guidance, in the form of a new Compliance Manual section, on the prohibition against national origin discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The guidance, along with a

PRESS RELEASE
12-19-05

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will hold its next meeting on Wednesday, December 21, at 9:00 a.m. (Eastern Time), at agency headquarters, 1801 L Street, N.W. In accordance with the Sunshine Act, the meeting is open for public observation of the Commission’s deliberations. During the meeting, the following matters are scheduled for consideration:

• Announcement of Notation Votes
• Modification of EEOC Order 120

PRESS RELEASE
12-19-02

WASHINGTON - The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced today that five of its attorneys have been newly selected to participate in the Government Fellowship Program of the American Bar Association's (ABA) Section of Labor and Employment Law. Under the program, which began in 1999, EEOC attorneys of excellence and promise in the field of civil rights law serve as Fellows on various committees of

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE               CONTACT: William J. White, Jr.  December 18, 1997                            (202) 663-4900                                         TDD: (202) 663-4494                                               Mark W. Wong                                               (202) 663-4027                                          TDD: (202) 663-7129 

PRESS RELEASE
12-18-97

WASHINGTON -- On December 16, 1997, President Clinton announced the recess appointment of Paul M. Igasaki to serve as a Commissioner and Vice Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Vice Chair Igasaki will serve as a recess appointee