EEOC Acting Chair Andrea Lucas Corrects EEOC’s Course in Federal Sector, Promises Accountability and Reform

Excerpt:  “Today the Acting Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Andrea Lucas, announced the beginning of reform in the agency’s federal sector program with the publication of two official memoranda. The first memorandum, ‘Ending Unauthorized Monetary Sanctions Against Federal Agencies,’ corrects the EEOC’s previous rejection of binding authority by the Department of Justice (DOJ). For nearly two decades, the EEOC has taken the position that it may impose monetary sanctions, including attorney’s fees and costs, against federal agency employers who fail to comply with the EEOC’s orders in administrative proceedings. This position disregarded the advice of DOJ’s Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) that EEOC may not impose such sanctions. … The second memorandum, ‘Restoring and Protecting the Presumption of Innocence in the EEO Complaint Process,’ affirms the commonsense proposition that everyone is innocent until proven guilty.”