Dive Brief:

• The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ordered its employees to halt the processing of claims alleging sexual orientation- and gender identity-based discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, according to two individuals with knowledge of the situation.
• It is not clear when processing will resume, if at all. The commission told employees to expect further guidance shortly. EEOC on Friday told HR Dive it is still accepting all charges and does not reject charges of discrimination, regardless of the basis for the claim. The commission on Thursday declined to comment on its investigatory practices.
• The news comes after EEOC Acting Chair Andrea Lucas, a Republican, announced that the agency would roll back several Biden-era initiatives intended to expand LGBTQ+ inclusion both internally at EEOC as well as in the commission’s external outreach to employees alleging employment discrimination. President Donald Trump also controversially dismissed two Democratic EEOC commissioners on Monday whose terms had not yet expired.

Dive Insight:

Despite the sea change at EEOC, employers should continue to maintain a policy of nondiscrimination, according to Jonathan Hyman, shareholder at Wickens Herzer Panza.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 2020 held that Title VII protects workers from discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and there may be ways for workers to pursue those claims in court, regardless of EEOC’s next steps. Additionally, many states independently protect employees from such discrimination at work.

Hyman also has long encouraged employers to maintain a policy of nondiscrimination against employees based on sexual orientation and gender identity for reasons other than compliance, and said he’ll continue to do so even if the Supreme Court were to reverse course.

“The law is the floor, not a ceiling,” he said. “Stay the course.”