Compliance Stuff

On January 22, 2026, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted to rescind its Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace . The proposal to rescind the guidance was approved two-to-one, with Chair Andrea Lucas (R) and Commissioner Britanny Panuccio (R) voting to repeal the document, and Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal (D) voting against rescission. The rescission is unsurprising now that the Commission has a quorum. Almost immediately after assuming her role as then-acting chair in January 2025, now-Chair Lucas signaled her opposition to portions of the guidance and indicated that she would seek to rescind or revise it as soon as she had the votes to do so. While the rescission is effective immediately, as a legal matter, the repeal of non-binding EEOC guidance does not dramatically alter federal anti-harassment law, nor does it bear on state civil rights laws that prohibit workplace harassment. History of Harassment Enforcement Guidance In 2015, the EEOC established ...

Don't overreact. (Or underreact.) This June, as corporations continue to roll back public support and funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, it is important for employers to be familiar with the current state of employment protections for sexual orientation and gender identity at both the federal and state levels. In many ways, inclusivity handled appropriately allows employers to attract and retain talent. And regardless of the current position of the federal government, employers must ensure that they are complying with applicable federal and state laws. Federal protections    The Supreme Court’s landmark  Bostock v. Clayton County  decision  held (arguably on a limited basis) that discrimination based on gender identity/expression and sexual orientation is a form of unlawful sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 .  Bostock  remains the governing law at the federal level, regardless of recent executive ...