According to the EEOC, discrimination charges filed in the first quarter of its 2008 fiscal year were up a whopping 21% compared to the same period last year.  That’s on top of a 9% jump in charge volume last year — the biggest increase since 2002.  (Click here for a full analysis of 2007 charge volume.)

The trend could be gathering steam.  The EEOC also reports that more than 40,000 charges were filed in February alone — a 31% increase over 2007.

So, what accounts for the dramatic rise?  As we discussed a few weeks ago here, economic conditions generally result in increased claims.  The EEOC also points to the fact that its intake questionnaire is now available online and that a new call center opened in March that enables the agency to better track statistics.

The bottom line, according to EEOC Chair Naomi Earp:  “Corporate America needs to do a better job of proactively preventing discrimination and addressing complaints promptly and effectively.”

(Sources:  EEOC, HR Magazine)

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 15th, 2008 at 5:32 am and is filed under Employment Law News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.