©2024 Seyfarth Shaw LLP EEOC-INITIATED LITIGATION: 2043 EDITION | 23 E EEOC’s Emphasis on Combating Systemic Discrimination Systemic discrimination refers to biases that are “built into systems, originating in the way work is organized” and “refers to structures that shape the work environment or employment prospects differently for different types or workers.” 88 The EEOC defines systemic cases as “pattern or practice, policy and/or class cases where the discrimination has a broad impact on an industry, profession, company or geographic location.” 89 In the EEOC’s Fiscal Year 2023 Agency Financial Report, Chair Burrows emphasized the EEOC’s commitment and focus on Combating systemic discrimination. Since 2006, the EEOC has made “the identification, investigation, and litigation of systemic discrimination cases (i.e. pattern or practice, policy, and/or class cases where the alleged discrimination has a broad impact on an industry, profession, company, or geographic area) a top priority.” 90 In Fiscal Year 2023, the EEOC filed 25 systemic lawsuits, nearly double the number filed in each of the past three fiscal years, and increased enforcement on both private sector and federal sector employers. Below are some examples of the systemic discrimination lawsuits filed by the EEOC in Fiscal Year 2023: • EEOC v. Tesla, Inc., Case No. 4:23-cv-04984 (N.D. Cal. 2023): In a Title VII action, the EEOC alleges systemic discrimination, harassment and retaliation by the employer against Black employees at its manufacturing facilities in Fremont, California. • EEOC v. Inova Home Health LLC et al., Case No. 1:23-cv-00264 (E.D. Va. 2023): The Washington Field Office of the EEOC, along with attorneys from the Philadelphia District, sued companies providing home healthcare coordination services in northern Virginia alleging they paid a group of female employee less than their male counterparts. The parties settled after several months of litigation. • EEOC v. Asphalt Paving Systems, Inc., Case No. 8:23-cv-02169 (M.D. Fla. 2023): Out of the EEOC’s Miami office, this Title VII case alleges Black employees were subjected to a hostile work environment that included racial slurs, threatening conduct and humiliating working conditions. Employers should expect that the Commission will continue to make good on its promise to litigate large‑scale, high-impact, and high-profile investigations and cases that address the issues identified as its enforcement priorities and areas of focus. 88 Systemic Enforcement at the EEOC, https://www.eeoc.gov/systemic-enforcement-eeoc. 89 Systemic Enforcement at the EEOC, https://www.eeoc.gov/systemic-enforcement-eeoc. 90 EEOC Strategic Plan 2022-2026, https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc-strategic-plan-2022-2026.
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