Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Can the EEOC Be Trusted to Police Its Own Compliance?

By Mark Girouard
December 31, 2014

Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has an express statutory duty to attempt to secure, in good faith, a conciliation agreement with an employer as a precondition to filing a lawsuit. See 42 U.S.C. ' 2000(e)-5(f)(1). This conciliation process often works to the benefit of employers, the Commission, and the individuals whom it represents by affording them an opportunity to resolve their disputes without the need for protracted and costly litigation.

In some cases, however, the EEOC has approached conciliation in a “take-it-or-leave-it” manner, making unreasonable demands while threatening to file suit and issue a press release, which can inflict significant reputational harm on the employer. Take, for example, EEOC v. Ruby Tuesday, Inc., where the EEOC demanded that a restaurant, which was the subject of a sexual discrimination charge, pay more than $6 million to resolve the matter, but gave the employer less than two weeks to accept before the EEOC rushed to the courthouse. 919 F. Supp. 2d 587 (W.D. Pa. 2013).

This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only

  • Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
  • Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
  • Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts

For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473

Read These Next
Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It Image

Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?

Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.

The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later Image

The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.

A Lawyer's System for Active Reading Image

Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.

Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent Trolls Image

With trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.