EEOC Rescinds ‘Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace’
On January 22, 2026, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted 2–1 to rescind its “Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace” (guidance) , which was approved in 2024. [1] At issue in the guidance was its definition of sex-based harassment under Title VII, which included “repeated and intentional use of a name or pronoun inconsistent with the individual’s known gender identity (misgendering); or the denial of access to a bathroom or other sex-segregated facility consistent with the individual’s gender identity.” [2] The rescission of this guidance is consistent with EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas’s vocal opposition to it dating back to 2024. She dissented from the guidance when it was first issued, criticizing the bathroom-access and pronoun portions based on her belief that they “eliminate single-sex workplace facilities” and “impinge on women’s (and indeed, all employees’) rights to freedom of speech and belief.” [3] After President Donald Trump appoi...