Despite the overall decline of employment discrimination charges, claims accusing employers of retaliation against their employees for involvement in a complaint reached an all-time high in the 2014 fiscal year – 42.8%, according to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).
Meanwhile, charges alleging employers of race discrimination – the second highest-occurring allegation – have remained relatively constant at 35%.
The EEOC made available 2014’s private sector data tables, which include breakdowns for all 88,778 charges of workplace discrimination it received. 2014’s fiscal year ran from October 1, 2013, to September 30, 2014.
Listed below are the top ten categories of charges, and amount of charges, that were filed with the EEOC in the 2014 fiscal year:
1. Retaliation (under all statutes): 37,955 / 42.8%
2. Race (racial harassment included): 31,073 / 35%
3. Sex (pregnancy and sexual harassment included): 26,027 / 29.3%
4. Disability: 25,369 / 28.6%
5. Age: 20,588 / 23.2%
6. National Origin: 9,579 / 10.8%
7. Religion: 3,549 / 4.0%
8. Color: 2,756 / 3.1%
9. Equal Pay Act: 938 / 1.1%
10. Genetic Information: 333 / 0.4%
Due to some charges alleging multiple bases, the percentages total greater than 100.
Claims filed against employers are not covered under General Liability nor Worker’s Compensation insurance. It is important for businesses to inquire into quotes for Employment Practices Liability Insurance (EPLI) to protect against discrimination suits.
