EEOC Issues Enforcement Guidance on National Origin Discrimination

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has issued its updated enforcement guidance on national origin discrimination to replace its 2002 compliance manual section on that subject.
The Commission has also issued two short user-friendly resource documents to accompany the guidance: a question-and-answer publication on the guidance document and a small business fact sheet that highlights the major points in the guidance in plain language.
“This guidance addresses important legal developments over the past 14 years on issues ranging from human trafficking to workplace harassment,” says EEOC Chair Jenny R. Yang.
“The examples and promising practices included in the guidance will promote compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws and help employers and employees better understand their legal rights and responsibilities.”
On June 2, EEOC published a proposed guidance for public input. The new guidance reflects the commission’s consideration of feedback received on the proposal from approximately 20 organizations and individuals.

EEOC’s enforcement guidance documents are approved by the commission, set forth the agency’s interpretation of the law, and explain how federal anti-discrimination laws and regulations apply to specific workplace situations.
The enforcement guidance on national origin discrimination discusses Title VII’s prohibition on national origin discrimination as applied to a wide variety of employment situations and highlights promising practices for employers to prevent discrimination.
The guidance also addresses developments in the courts since 2002, as well as topics such as job segregation, human trafficking, and intersectional discrimination.
In fiscal 2015, approximately 11% of the 89,385 private-sector charges filed with EEOC alleged national origin discrimination.
These charges alleged a wide variety of Title VII violations, including unlawful failure to hire, termination, language-related issues, and harassment.