Dive Brief:
- President Donald Trump announced in a statement Wednesday the appointment of EEOC Commissioner Victoria Lipnic to the position of EEOC Acting Chair.
- Lipnic will replace outgoing EEOC Chair Jenny Yang, who was appointed by President Obama to lead the EEOC in 2014, the National Law Review reports. The National Law Review said Lipnic's appointment may raise questions concerning the Employer Information Report (EEO-1). In September, the EEOC announced the forms would be used to collect, among other things, summary pay data from larger employers.
- A 2010 Obama appointee to the EEOC and member of the Republican Party, Lipnic said in the statement that she was "honored" to be selected by Trump, adding, "I believe equal employment opportunity is critical to all Americans and to how we define ourselves as a nation."
Dive Insight:
Yang will apparently stay on board as a member of the commission while Lipnic assumes the role of Acting Chair. Some put Lipnic's name forward as one of Trump's potential picks to lead the Labor Dept. before the president selected fast food CEO Andrew Puzder.
Lipnic is regarded as a moderate member of the EEOC who dissented on issues like employee pay data, hence the reported tension around EEO-1 forms. She has been vocal about the commission's findings concerning workplace harassment in the U.S., calling one EEOC report "jaw-dropping."
The EEOC is tasked with enforcing a wide array of civil rights measures in American workplaces, including the 97,443 accounts of alleged workplace discrimination filed in 2016. It's an important part of the government for HR observers to focus on given recent challenges to employee rights in some states.
