EEOC Proposes Ending Annual EEO-1 Workforce Data Reporting

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted July 21 to propose eliminating the annual EEO-1 workforce demographic reporting requirement. If finalized, covered private employers and certain federal contractors would no longer submit annual workforce counts by job category, race or ethnicity, and sex.

The proposal now enters the federal rulemaking process and will be published for public comment. Current EEO-1 reporting and recordkeeping requirements remain in effect.

The EEOC has collected EEO-1 workforce data since 1966. The report generally applies to private employers with 100 or more employees and certain federal contractors meeting applicable thresholds. Employers report aggregate workforce counts across 10 job categories by race or ethnicity and sex; individual employee records are not submitted.

The EEOC has used the data to support enforcement of federal anti-discrimination laws, identify employment patterns, and conduct workforce research. The proposal was approved on a 2-1 vote. EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas said rescinding the requirement would reduce employer compliance costs, while Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal argued that the data remains an important enforcement tool.

The proposal would also eliminate similar demographic reporting requirements for certain unions, state and local governments, public school systems, and apprenticeship programs. It would not change employers’ separate obligations to retain employment records required by federal law.

If finalized, the proposal would eliminate one of employers’ longest-standing federal workforce reporting requirements and reduce a recurring compliance obligation for HR departments.

For now, employers should continue complying with existing EEO-1 reporting requirements and maintain required employment records while the proposal proceeds through the federal rulemaking process.