EEOC Issues Agency Financial Report for Fiscal Year 2024

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) detailed its financial management, gave a high-level overview of key performance results, and highlighted its implementation of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) in its Fiscal Year 2024 Agency Financial Report (AFR), released today. 

For the 20th consecutive year, the agency received an unmodified opinion from independent auditors, reflecting the EEOC’s sound financial management and internal controls.

 In fiscal year 2024, the EEOC strategically used its resources to advance equal opportunity in the workplace, focusing on combatting systemic discrimination, preventing and remedying workplace harassment, protecting vulnerable workers, and addressing discrimination caused by the use of technology, including artificial intelligence, in employment decisions. Fiscal year 2024 was also the first full year in which the EEOC enforced its newest statute, the PWFA, which requires employers to reasonably accommodate a worker’s or applicant’s known limitations related to pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, absent undue hardship. The EEOC’s implementation of the PWFA exemplifies the agency’s broader efforts to prevent and remedy unlawful employment discrimination and highlights the impact of its civil rights law enforcement activities on the nation. 

As part of the implementation of the PWFA, the EEOC issued final regulations and interpretive guidance, developed numerous educational resources, and engaged in robust outreach and education to help employers, workers, and the general public understand the law and the final regulation. During the fiscal year, preliminary data show that the EEOC received thousands of charges of discrimination that included claims under the PWFA, and the EEOC used its law enforcement authority to file five PWFA lawsuits.

Along with the responsibility of enforcing a new statute, the EEOC continued to experience increased demand for its services. Based on preliminary data, in fiscal year 2024, the EEOC received over 640,000 inquiries from the public through its toll-free 1-800 number, ASL video phone line, and general information email. Inquiries to the agency have increased by double digit percentages over the last three fiscal years. 

“The EEOC was created by the landmark 1964 Civil Rights Act in response to the strong national commitment to civil rights.  Today, 60 years later, promoting equal employment opportunity and enforcing the nation’s federal workplace anti-discrimination laws remain as important as ever,” said EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows.  “In fiscal year 2024, the agency continued to play a vital role in preventing and remedying discrimination and advancing equal opportunity in the workplace. The EEOC also worked to integrate the PWFA’s critical protections into our outreach, education, and enforcement efforts to ensure that pregnant and postpartum workers are able to fully participate in the American workplace.” 

In fiscal year 2025, the agency will continue to leverage technology to improve its services. A new e-filing system for attorneys, implemented in December 2023, as a complement to EEOC’s self-help public portal, allows licensed attorneys to submit charges electronically, and established the baseline infrastructure for future efforts to modernize the agency’s other public-facing portals.  The E-File for Attorneys tool also freed up agency resources to better serve individuals who are unrepresented, reducing staff work time by at least 15 minutes per charge filed by an attorney and saving an estimated 3,250 hours of staff time in the approximately nine-month period after implementation.

Comprehensive enforcement and litigation statistics for fiscal year 2024, including charges received and monies recovered for victims of discrimination, are expected to be released in early 2025 with the agency’s Annual Performance Report. 

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.

Source: U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC.gov)