Private sector bias filings a record high

Fueled in part by an increase in age and disability discrimination claims, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission received a record-high 99,947 charges of employment discrimination in fiscal 2011, the agency has announced.

The EEOC obtained more than $455 million in relief for discrimination claims through its administrative program and via litigation during the fiscal year.

“For the second year in a row, the EEOC received a record number of new charges of discrimination,” EEOC Chair Jacqueline Berrien said in a statement announcing the figures.

Retaliation remains the most frequent allegation in EEOC charges, a trend that has continued since 2009. About 37 percent of all charges involved claims of retaliation, followed by racial discrimination claims, which accounted for 34 percent of charges.

But while race and gender bias claims declined overall, age and disability claims increased.

In fact, the agency’s enforcement actions in Americans with Disabilities Act claims produced the highest increase in monetary relief among all the statutes. The agency obtained $103.4 million in administrative relief in ADA actions, a 36 percent increase over the previous year. Back impairments were the most frequently cited impairment under the ADA, followed by other orthopedic impairments, depression, anxiety disorders and diabetes.

Despite the uptick in charges, the EEOC reduced its caseload for the second year in a row by resolving more charges than it took in.