Feds’ new EEO-1 changes: Payroll just caught a major break

In the middle of your preparations for the EEOC’s more detailed EEO-1 reporting requirements? Stop what you’re doing right now. 

The controversial, workload-increasing changes to the EEO-1 have been “stayed indefinitely.”

As reported by Robin Shea on the excellent Employment & Labor Insider, a blog by the Constangy, Brooks, Smith and Prophete LLP law firm.

‘A victory for common sense’

The announcement came from Randel Johnson, the VP of Labor, Immigration and Employee Benefits at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Directly addressing the members of the Chamber’s Labor Relations and Employee Benefits Committees, Johnson said:

“We have just learned that the deadline for compliance with the new EEO-1 form reporting requirement for data on hours and compensation will be stayed indefinitely. According to our sources, [the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs of the Office of Management and Budget] based their decision on two grounds, one of which was the appeal submitted by the Chamber that highlighted the new form’s problems with cost, utility, and confidentiality. [The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission] will be publishing further details about what actions they will be taking and any future deadlines and timelines in the Federal Register.

This is a victory, not just for the business community, but for common sense in the world of regulations and information collection. As you know, the Chamber was at the forefront throughout the development of the revised form in crafting arguments opposing EEOC’s gross overreach in expanding the existing EEO-1 form to unmanageable proportions without any discernable benefit. . . .

We will provide more details on this important development as they become available …”

What it would’ve done

The new EEO-1, which would have have required for employers with more than 100 employees, was slated to be due for the first time on March 31, 2018

Here’s how it would’ve worked: Employers would continue to categorize employees first by EEO-1 job category (using EEOC’s 10 job categories) and then by sex and ethnicity or race.

These two steps haven’t changed. After reporting those metrics, employers will categorize their employees by pay bands. The EEOC added a total of 12 pay bands to the form – starting with (1) $19,239 and under and ending with (12) $208,000 and over.

From there, employers will add up the number of employees in each pay band by sex, and ethnicity or race.

The new rule would’ve also changed the “workforce snapshot” period, the time employers identify the workforce in its EEO-1, to Oct. 1 through Dec. 1 because of the new March 31 deadline (previous snapshot was July 1-Sept. 30).

Finally, the new rules require firms to report the total number of hours worked by employees in each pay band.