Welcome back to another episode of Redefining HR. In this episode, I’m sitting down with EEOC Commissioner Keith Sonderling. Our conversation ranged from federal civil rights to AI. We also discuss why it’s important for the EEOC and HR to work together and create significant and lasting change in the workplace.  

The labor and employment industry is all Keith has known during his career, from practicing labor and employment law in Florida to eventually working for the Department of Labor. In 2019, he was nominated to be a commissioner at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and was confirmed in September 2020 after a full Senate vote.
HR professionals already know that the EEOC is the regulating body for civil rights within the workplace. “My initial experience from the EEOC was when a company had issues, when a former employee or current employee brought a charge of discrimination, and it was always from an investigative defense standpoint,” Keith says, adding that the EEOC is “so much more than that.”

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Adapting to Modern Cases

Many of the civil rights laws that we have today were because of movements people led to bring equality to the workforce. The laws we have are the foundation and what we need to uphold in the workplace, but it’s up to HR to endorse this in their companies while looking to the EEOC to enforce it.

Things like online harassment weren’t a thing back in the 1960s when many relevant laws were enacted. Many professionals are still learning how to navigate through that avenue, but the thing is, HR sees these cases first. Keith shares that the EEOC can look at the data and trends to better understand emerging issues, but they might not find out about certain issues unless they’re directly reported.

“We could see trends in cases that come in the door, but that takes an employee being discriminated against. That takes an employee not only being discriminated against but moving forward and filing a case against their employer,” Keith shares. Only then does the case become a public forum, helping the EEOC to be aware of what’s happening and collect data.

Constant Communication is Key

The EEOC can only act on the data provided through cases being reported. While the EEOC wants to prevent the circumstances in which employees would file a claim, Keith emphasizes that the best way to do that is by creating an open dialogue between HR and the EEOC.

Keith explains, “As HR professionals, you see it, you see a lot of things that never come to the EEOC because you’ve resolved it or you’ve modified your programs or policies that are in place — preventing that issue at your one company. But how are we supposed to know that from the federal government’s perspective, outside of that employee coming to us?”

The ongoing dialogue that Keith wants to have with the HR community can help both parties spot issues in advance, see the trends and have everyone in the room understand what is needed for the future and from the EEOC. It’s about being on the front lines and not just waiting for the worst to happen. 

This change also requires learning about, understanding and preventing nationwide problems before they get worse. This is important to Keith for creating the meaningful change that he wants to see, and he can’t do it without HR professionals out there doing the work. “I need to hear from you,” he says.

Resources to Stay in the Know

The foundation for this dialogue is spotting issues and putting them on the EEOC’s radar. The EEOC provides a guide on its website with best practices for employees and employers, including HR and equal employment opportunity professionals. 

At the EEOC, we “at least have, on our website, ways to spot those issues,” Keith says. “And a lot of them have very clear examples of past issues that we’ve seen.” However, when it comes to spotting trends, it’s a bit more challenging for the EEOC without a person coming in, signing an affidavit and formally charging their employer. 

The two most common claims filed by employees with the EEOC are employer retaliation and disability discrimination. “Retaliation is the No. 1 claim for the last five, six years. 55.8% of our charges allege retaliation because a lot of that is based on underlying discrimination. … But outside of retaliation, disability discrimination is the second-highest discrimination every single year,” he says.

These trends show the EEOC what happens after the harm has been done. From there, they can put out more resources for employees on preventing retaliation, discrimination and more, but “that’s post-fact.” There needs to be more communication between HR and the EEOC to tackle these issues before the claims come in, Keith says. 

“I don’t know how we get there other than more dialogues and more conversations. We do have an 800 number where employees can call in, in advance of filing a charge and making any inquiries. And we get over 300,000 phone calls there a year,” Keith explains.

People in This Episode

• Keith Sonderling: LinkedIn, Twitter, EEOC website

Resources From This Episode

• What You Should Know About COVID-19 and the ADA, the Rehabilitation Act, and Other EEO Laws

• Enforcement and Litigation Statistics

• EEO-1 Component FAQ

• Enforcement Guidance: Unlawful Disparate Treatment of Workers with Caregiving Responsibilities

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