Senators Question Staffing Changes at EEOC

Two senators have submitted a letter to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to obtain more information regarding staffing levels and needs at the agency. The senators also inquired about how the agency is prioritizing staffing needs.

Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) explain in the letter that Congress appropriated a significant increase in funds on a bipartisan basis in both 2018 and 2019 to “ensure EEOC is equipped with appropriate funding to handle the upsurge in workplace harassment cases as workers came forward in the wake of the #MeToo movement.” The #MeToo movement was characterized by a desire for victims of sexual misconduct to feel comfortable speaking out against abusers.

Last year, the letter continues to explain, Congress also provided the EEOC with an additional funding boost for FY 2020 in which the agency was “expressly directed” to increase front-line and investigative staff.

The senators then cite an EEOC internal budget plan, which indicate they has reduced staff personnel by 7 percent thus far in FY 2020.

“We are deeply worried these cuts in personnel threaten the agency's ability to meet the demand for its services and to provide the crucial protections to which workers are entitled under federal law. It is therefore alarming that in its FY 2021 budget request, the agency inexplicably requests a significant cut in funding and a further 10 percent reduction in staff. If enacted, this would represent the lowest staffing level at the agency in at least 40 years and a loss of 186 additional jobs,” the letter explains.

In order to understand the reasoning for the agency budget cut request and to prepare the FY 2021 budget accurately, the senators requested:

1.       A detailed accounting of EEOC’s plans by quarter for spending its FY 2020 budget for salary and expenses on supporting, retaining, and increasing staff, as well as current staffing levels.

2.       An explanation of how the EEOC’s current plan for FY 2020 spending aligns with Congress' intent that the agency use its additional funding to increase front-line and investigative staff.

3.       In reference to the EEOC’s “The Chair’s Priorities for 2020” report, which did not include staffing increases, an explanation of how the agency is executing on the chair's commitment to "continuing to provide excellent customer service" by “supporting EEOC's front-line employees," stated in Priority# 1 and an explanation of why Priority #4, which outlines the chair's commitment to "strategically allocating commission resources" to activities that "will have the maximum impact on fulfilling our mission," does not include retaining and hiring staff.

4.       An explanation of how the agency will meet its stated priorities and goals and continue current work with fewer staff.

Senator Murray and Senator Warren both serve on the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.