DEI Discovery

Lawyers are being put on notice:

“The EEOC is prepared to root out discrimination anywhere it may rear its head, including in our nation’s elite law firms,” EEOC Acting Chair Andrea Lucas said in a written statement. “No one is above the law — and certainly not the private bar.” The EEOC letters noted the agency’s concerns that some firms’ employment practices, many of those labeled or framed as DEI, may unlawfully discriminate against Americans based on race, sex, or other protected practices. The EEOC continued: Title VII prohibits an employer from discriminating against an individual because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Under Title VII, an employer initiative, policy, program, or practice may be unlawful if it involves an employer taking an employment action motivated — in whole or in part — by race, sex, or another protected characteristic. Title VII also bars employers from limiting, segregating, or classifying employees based on race, sex, or other protected characteristics in a way that affects their status or deprives them of employment opportunities, including in voluntary employee groups and activities which are employer sponsored. There is no “diversity” exception to these prohibitions. It is the responsibility of the EEOC to enforce the provisions of Title VII with respect to businesses and other private sector employers.

The law still matters, even for lawyers...