EEOC Chair Burrow says more guidance is coming

At the recent American Bar Association (ABA) meeting, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Chair Charlotte Burrows indicated the agency would be issuing new guidance in the near future.

In a session on March 29, 2023, Burrows indicated the agency is working to issue the long-­delayed sexual harassment guidance that will address online harassment and the pandemic’s impact on workplaces. She noted the guidance has been in the works since the Obama administration and that as a result the issues have evolved in recent years to include online harassment, which was especially rampant during the pandemic.

Burrows also mentioned that the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act becomes effective on June 27 and requires the EEOC to issue regulations by December 29. While the agency is available to answer employers’ questions on compliance, she noted it’s “a little tricky to deal with while we’re writing the reg because until we come to a decision about some of the more nuanced pieces, and how we’re going to interpret it, we can’t, obviously, tell you the answer.”

Finally, Burrows indicated the agency was working with the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) to protect construction workers from harassment and discrimination as the infrastructure projects take off.