EEOC Votes to Rescind Affirmative Action Interpretive Guidelines and Related Compliance Manual

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted yesterday to rescind a pair of approximately 40-year-old agency policy documents: the agency interpretive guidelines titled “Affirmative Action Appropriate Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as Amended” (Affirmative Action Guidelines) and the related “Compliance Manual Section 607 on Affirmative Action” (Compliance Manual on Affirmative Action).

The Commission found that the Affirmative Action Guidelines ran afoul of the text of Title VII and contradicted Supreme Court case law that has developed over the four decades since the Affirmative Action Guidelines were issued. The stated purpose of the Affirmative Action Guidelines in 1979 was to protect “employers, labor organizations, and other persons subject to Title VII [who] have changed their employment practices and systems to improve employment opportunities for minorities and women” via “race, sex, or national origin conscious ... decisions.” Yet, the Supreme Court has held Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 provides the “same protections for every ‘individual.’”

“The Commission’s rescission of the Affirmative Action Guidelines is consistent with the text of Title VII and Supreme Court precedent,” said EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas. “As our nation approaches its 250th birthday, we are reminded that the Founders’ vision rested on the enduring principle that every individual is created equal and therefore is entitled to equal treatment under the law. This week's action reaffirms that Title VII's protections apply equally to all American workers and that equal opportunity remains a defining commitment of our democracy.”

The Commission also voted to rescind the related Compliance Manual on Affirmative Action, made obsolete in light of the rescission of the Affirmative Action Guidelines and was inconsistent with Supreme Court case law and key developments in the lower courts.

The EEOC is the sole federal agency authorized to investigate and litigate against businesses and other private sector employers for violations of federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. For public sector employers, the EEOC shares jurisdiction with the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division. The EEOC also is responsible for coordinating the federal government’s employment antidiscrimination effort. More information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov.