What’s To Come Of The EEOC Under This New Presidential Administration?

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) has recently undergone monumental changes under President Donald J. Trump’s administration, and many are questioning just what the EEOC’s landscape, future direction, and its commitment to workers’ rights will be in the upcoming years.

Who is the new EEOC Commissioner?

Likely the first step in analyzing just what is to come is in the choice of the new EEOC Commissioner. On January 21 2025, Trump named Commissioner Andrea R. Lucas as the Acting Chair of the EEOC, who was nominated by Trump in 2020 as an EEOC commissioner.  U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Press Release, www.eeoc.gov, President Appoints Andrea R. Lucas EEOC Acting Chair, (Jan. 21, 2025).

Lucas has been vocal about her intentions moving forward: “I intend to dispel the notion that only the ‘right sort of’ charging party is welcome through our doors and to reinforce instead the fundamental belief enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and our civil rights laws—that all people are ‘created equal.’ I am committed to ensuring equal justice under the law and to focusing on equal opportunity, merit, and colorblind equality.” Id.

This notion of colorblind equality in conjunction with a heavy criticism of diversity, equity, and inclusion (“DEI”) since nominated in 2020 has for many to question whether the decades old protections for protected groups of people will continue to exist or not in the upcoming few years. Haniyah Philogene, Who is Andrea Lucas? Meet the acting chair of the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), https://thegrio.com/2025/01/24/who-is-andrea-lucas-meet-the-acting-chair-of-the-us-equal-employment-opportunity-commission-eeoc/ (Jan. 24, 2025).

The Removal of Key EEOC Figures

The second step is in the removal of key figures in the current EEOC landscape.  In late-January 2025, Trump dismissed two Democratic commissioners, Vice Chair Jocelyn Samuels and Commissioner Charlotte Burrows. Andrea Hsu, Fired by Trump, EEOC official fears what the anti-discrimination agency will become, https://www.nhpr.org/2025-02-09/fired-by-trump-eeoc-official-fears-what-the-anti-discrimination-agency-will-become?utm_source=chatgpt.com (February 9, 2025).  Burrow’s term was to expire in July 2028 and Samuels’s term was to expire in 2026. Gerren Keith Gaynor, Black former EEOC commissioner speaks out after Trump fires and replaces her 3.5 years before term ends, https://thegrio.com/2025/01/28/black-former-eeoc-commissioner-speaks-out-after-trump-fires-her-3-5-years-before-term-ends-replaces-her/#google_vignette (January 28, 2025).

So who was Charlotte Burrrows before she was the EEOC Commissioner?  Prior to her appointment, Burrows worked on Capitol Hill in different roles such as, Associate Deputy Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ’) – – working on various areas, including, but not limited to employment law, voting rights, racial profiling, as well as implementing the Violence Against Women Act – – and General Counsel for Civil and Constitutional Rights to Senator Edward M. Kennedy.  U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Charlotte A. Burrows, www.eeoc.gov.  President Appoints Andrea R. Lucas EEOC Acting Chair, (Jan. 21, 2025).  Before that, she was the Deputy Chief of the Civil Rights Division’s Employment Litigation Section at DOJ, enforcing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Id.

Who was Jocelyn Samuels before her time in the EEOC? When Trump nominated her on March 16, 2020, she was, and still is, the executive director of UCLA School of Law’s Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law and Public Policy. UCLA Law, https://law.ucla.edu/news/samuels-nominated-eeoc-seat (March 18, 2020).  Prior to this role, she held positions as Director of the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services as well as Acting Assistant Attorney General for civil rights in the U.S. Department of Justice. Juanna Summers, Trump fired EEOC commissioner Jocelyn Samuels. She isn’t going quietly, https://www.npr.org/2025/02/05/nx-s1-5285697/trump-fired-eeoc-commissioner-jocelyn-samuels-she-isnt-going-quietly (February 5, 2025).  Her background is one in which is clearly rooted in serving the working people and advocating for the protections of civil rights.

Both Burrows and Samuels haven’t been quiet about Trump’s decision to remove them.  Amidst openly admitting to exploring her legal options, Burrows notes that she is proud of the work they did to “remove barriers for equal opportunity for all workers and to promote fair and nondiscriminatory workplaces,” but she also remarks, “[w]hile I strongly disagree with the President’s actions, and will explore all legal options available to me, I will continue to do all I can to fight for the rights of American workers and to support the efforts of others who do the same.” Gaynor, supra, https://thegrio.com/2025/01/28/black-former-eeoc-commissioner-speaks-out-after-trump-fires-her-3-5-years-before-term-ends-replaces-her/#google_vignette.

Despite the fact that Trump chose Samuels to fill a Democratic seat on the bipartisan commission during his first term – – while then being very clear on what her strong policy views were on civil rights – – Samuels expresses that she was informed that she was labeled as unfit to serve given her vocal advocacy for DEI initiatives. Summers, supra, https://www.npr.org/2025/02/05/nx-s1-5285697/trump-fired-eeoc-commissioner-jocelyn-samuels-she-isnt-going-quietly. What was she told exactly?  While Samuels does not say exactly who told her, she does says “My embrace of radical ideology and my position on DEI and the permissibility of it make me unfit to serve.”  Id.  While her views haven’t changed and while this administration, nor has the current EEOC, have stated what the new EEOC policy will embody, it is safe to assume, something is different than how it has been.

While, this might be just be what some might express as a natural removal of figures following a new presidential term, others may staunchly warn that this should serve as a wake-up call as to whether the EEOC under this presidency will continued to be aimed at protecting vulnerable workers which have been for years marginalized in the workforce.

If you feel you have or are currently experiencing a wage and hour violation, please feel free to contact Borrelli & Associates, P.L.L.C., to schedule a free consultation through one of our websites, www.employmentlawyernewyork.com, www.516abogado.com, or any of our phone numbers: (516) 248-5550, (516) ABOGADO, or (212) 679-5000.