Acting EEOC Chair Faces Scrutiny Over DEI Agenda

Acting Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Chair Andrea Lucas faced  criticism from both Democrats and Republicans during her nomination hearing to become permanent chair at the Commission.

Full embrace of Trump influence: In response to questions from Democrats on the Senate HELP Committee regarding undue presidential influence over the agency, Acting Chair Lucas unequivocally stated that President Trump should have final say over EEOC actions.

• Ms. Lucas emphasized that the President should be able to direct EEOC actions and that “the American people should be delighted by the idea that President Trump is leading with an amazing vision for civil rights for all Americans, and that that should thrill them.”

• Ms. Lucas similarly testified in support of the terminations of her fellow Commissioners Joceyln Samuels and then-Chair Charlotte Burrows (both Democrats), claiming that the EEOC is not an independent agency but merely an extension of the President’s authority.

  • Paradoxically, Ms. Lucas vehemently protested President Biden’s previous termination of former EEOC General Counsel Sharon Gustafson (a Republican).

Why it matters: Ms. Lucas’s remarks erase any remaining pretense that the Trump administration’s EEOC will act as a non-partisan independent agency, free from White House political pressure. 

• Between Ms. Lucas’s own well-established views on “illegal DEI” and her clear willingness to do whatever the White House asks of her, employers can expect DEI initiatives to be highly scrutinized under her potential tenure as EEOC Chair. 

• It is not difficult to imagine the EEOC being used to publicly pressure companies on DEI.

Lucas hit on gender identity protections: Ms. Lucas was also questioned about her backtracking of EEOC enforcement against gender-identity related discrimination. Earlier this week, House Democrats sent a letter to Ms. Lucas accusing the Acting Chair of “failing to fulfill enforcement of Title VII…relating to gender identity discrimination.” The letter urged Ms. Lucas to uphold her obligations under Title VII, including  protecting against gender identity discrimination. Given the current administration and Ms. Lucas’s own views on the matter, it is unlikely that the letter will have any effect.