EEOC reports surge in charges in fiscal year 2022

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received 73,485 discrimination charges in fiscal year 2022 ended Sept. 30, an almost 20% increase from the previous fiscal year, the agency said in a report issued Monday.

It also managed 475,000 calls, which was an 18% increase from FY 2021, and managed 32% more emails from the public, the report said.

In conjunction with the performance report, the agency released its general counsel’s office’s annual report, which said the agency filed 91 employment discrimination lawsuits, of which 62, or 68.1% of the total, were filed under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and 27, or 29.7%, were filed under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Some cases were filed under more than one act.

Forty-five of the lawsuits alleged sex discrimination; 32 alleged retaliation; 27 alleged disability discrimination; and 17 alleged race discrimination.

Discharge was the most frequently alleged issue, accounting for 58 of the suits, followed by harassment, at 39, and hiring, at 27.