EEOC to further delay EEO-1 Component 2 Implementation

Last month we discussed a developing story regarding employer requirements to provide pay data on EEO-1 reports – more formerly known as Component 2. As we discussed, on March 4, 2019, The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the immediate reinstatement of the EEOC’s pay data collection provisions (requiring covered employers to report pay information by race, ethnicity, and gender) in their EEO-1 report. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) had suspended those Obama era provisions in 2017.

Shortly after our post, the Court held a status conference inquiring as to how the EEOC and the OMB planned to comply with its order. The EEOC stated that as a result of the Court’s reinstatement of the revised EEO-1 Component 2 collection, the EEOC would need until September 30, 2019 in order to account for significant practical challenges associated with complying with the Court’s order – it would also need to approach a third party vendor in order to handle the mass amount of data. The commission relied upon the EEOC Acting Chair’s administrative powers under Title VII as its authority to adjust the Component 2 pay data collection deadline to September 30, 2019.

Based on the recent filings, it is clear the EEOC is not equipped to begin pay data collection for Component 2 by May 31, 2019. Simply put, the Commission intends to delay pay data collection until September 30, 2019 – at the earliest. What this means for the immediate future of Component 2 is entirely unclear. It remains possible that the Court’s original March 4, 2019 ruling reinstating the pay data collection may be appealed – while it is also not entirely clear how the Court will respond to the EEOC’s most recent explanation.

With all of this in mind, employers should submit the Component 1 EEO-1 report data as required by May 31, 2019. As of today, unfortunately, it is not clear when Component 2 pay data will need to be submitted. Employers should be prepared to submit such data at a later date. We will continue to monitor this developing situation.