According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's recently released enforcement and litigation data for FY 2013, total charges of discrimination filed with the agency dipped by nearly 6% compared to the prior fiscal year, although the agency recovered a record amount ($372.1 million) through its administrative process. The new data, which includes detailed charge breakdowns by claim type and state, supplements the agency's Performance and Accountability Report (PAR) for Fiscal Year 2013, which was released in December 2013. The PAR summarizes the agency's assessment of its policies and financial performance for the fiscal year, including the number of private sector charges received, federal lawsuits filed, and monetary awards recovered.
Some highlights of the new data are as follows:
- The number of retaliation charges increased this year, with a total of 38,539 charges filed for all statutes (up from 37,836 filed in FY 2012). Charges of Title VII-related retaliation increased slightly from 31,208 to 31,478 charges in FY 2013.
- Approximately 35% (33,068) of charges filed in FY 2013 set forth claims of race discrimination; 29.5% (27,687) of all claims alleged discrimination based on sex; 28.8% (21,396) alleged age discrimination; 27.7% (25,957) were disability-based claims; 11.4% (10,642) alleged national origin discrimination; 4% (3,721) set forth religious discrimination claims; 3.4% (3,146) alleged discrimination based on color; 1.1% (1,019) alleged pay discrimination; and .4% (333) alleged discrimination based on genetic information.
- The percentage of claims filed alleging discrimination based on genetic information, disability, retaliation, color, religion, and national origin increased slightly over the prior fiscal year. The percentage of claims filed alleging discrimination based on age and sex decreased slightly. The percentage of equal pay claims remained the same over this time period.
- The states with the greatest number of charges filed were Texas (9,068 charges, or 9.7%); Florida (7,597, 8.1%); and California (6,892, or 7.4%). The fewest charges were filed in Montana (18), Vermont (31), and Maine (34).
For a comprehensive overview of the EEOC's charge, litigation, and regulatory activities over the past year, see The Littler Report: Annual Report on EEOC Developments: Fiscal Year 2013.
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