EEO-1 Filing: Now or Later

Typically, during this time of the year, school preparation and readiness is underway, employees are settling back into their daily work routines following vacations and most employers are preparing to file their EEO-1 reports. This year, however, may have a different impact on that so-called end-of-summer routine.

Employers with one hundred (100) employees or more, and federal contractors with fifty (50) or more employees and $50,000 in contracts must file EEO-1 reports with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”). The EEO-1 report accounts for all employees by job category, ethnicity, race and gender. The EEO-1 filing period typically commences at the beginning of July and concludes the end of September. This summer there is no required reporting. Instead and per Former President Obama’s announcement of the EEOC-led EEO-1 revisions in January of 2016, “new” EEO-1 reports are to be filed by March 31, 2018. This is, of course, unless the Trump Administration plans to repeal these “new” revisions.

The “new” revisions to the EEO-1 have allowed for additional data collection to take place, specifically in regard to employees’ W-2 earnings and hours worked. In addition, every employee identified must be accounted for in one of the twelve pay bands, within one of ten EEO-1 job categories per establishment. This cumbersome data collection has some employers shaking their heads as it is seen as overly burdensome and questionable based on whether or not the data collection will effectively determine and/or identify pay discrimination.

The potential for repeal has been discussed in many political blogs, articles and newsletters. However, the decision still remains up in the air with some employers having high hopes it is repealed. So as the “old” filing period remains upon us, employers are questioning whether or not to continue reporting as normal or wait until January 1, 2018 to start collecting data. Nevertheless, employers should plan to proactively meet the “new” reporting requirements unless or until the decision is repealed[1].

Due to the amount of data collection being requested, it will be hard for any employer to turn on a dime in order to produce the required report. With that being said, what can employers do now to ensure they are prepared to submit the additional data by March 2018?

• Determine whether or not the employer meets the reporting requirements as noted in the second paragraph of this article. An exception being that if the employer is a federal contractor and has between 50 to 99 employees, it should use the old version of the report without “enhanced” data reporting requirements.
• Determine how “total hours worked” will be reported for exempt employees.
• Determine the “snapshot” of the workforce between October 1st and December 31st, which will be used for reporting purposes.
• Separate employees into different salary bands designated by the EEOC.
• Ensure data is collected for the workforce regarding race, ethnicity and gender. If not, consider issuing a voluntary self-identification survey.
• Ensure data, i.e., race, ethnicity, gender, hours worked and total compensation, is housed in the same reporting system for ease of data collection.

Additionally, the employer should be proactive in minimizing the likelihood of an investigation based on the employer’s pay practices by:

• Ensuring all job titles are appropriately classified in accordance to the EEO-1 categories.
• Conducting a compensation analysis to identify discrepancies.
• Preparing a “practice” draft report to identify potential gaps and liabilities within the data collected[2].

The EEOC provides a wonderful Q & A blog regarding the notice of proposed changes to the EEO-1. The site also provides the reader with background information on the new proposed changes as well as a “how to” for determining salary bands, and other important items required. Visit the following link for more details:

https://www.eeoc.gov/employers/eeo1survey/2016_eeo-1_proposed_changes_qa.cfm

For further questions, please contact Creative Business Solutions (CBS) so we may assist you with determining the best course of action for your organization. Please call us today so we may ensure your organization is prepared and compliant with the “new” EEO-1 reporting requirements before the deadline of March 2018.

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[1] Akroyd, Phil. “EEO-1 Filing Status: Where Do We Stand?” Affirmative Action News by Biddle Consulting Group, Biddle Consulting Group, 30 June 2017, affirmativeaction.com/news/eeo-1-filing-status-where-do-we-stand/?utm_source=Affirmative%2BAction%2BNews&utm_campaign=5e54908f55-AANews_RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_3ae4bcb461-5e54908f55-117790077.

[2] Crotty, Cara. “Are You Ready for the New EEO-1 Report?” Employment & Labor Insider, Constangy Brooks, Smith & Prophete LLP, 5 July 2017, www.employmentandlaborinsider.com/affirmative-action/are-you-ready-for-the-new-eeo-1-report/.