The E-RACE (Eradicating Racism and Colorism from Employment) Initiative is a five-year national outreach, education, and enforcement campaign implemented to advance the legal right to a workplace free of race and color discrimination.
Why Do We Need E-RACE?
- The most frequently filed claims with the EEOC are allegations of race discrimination, racial harassment, or retaliation arising from opposition to race discrimination. In fiscal year 2006, over 27,200 charges alleged race-based discrimination, accounting for 36% of all the charges filed.
- Since 1992, the annual number of charges alleging color- based discrimination has steadily risen. In fiscal year 1992, EEOC received 374 charges alleging discrimination based on color. By fiscal year 2006, that number had increased to 1,241 charges.
- New forms of discrimination are emerging -
- With a growing number of interracial marriages and families and increased immigration, the racial demographics of the workforce have changed bringing new issues of race and color discrimination to the workplace;
- Advances in technology, such as the use of video resumes, may influence recruitment and hiring decisions based on race, color, gender or national origin, or disproportionately exclude applicants who lack access to computers and video cams;
- Selection or screening criteria -- such as credit scores, certain employment tests and the use of computer software that flags addresses or zip codes -- may screen out individuals based on race and ethnicity.
- Blatant race and color discrimination persists
- Racial slurs, nooses, KKK propaganda, and other racist insignia still exist in the workplace;
- Racial and cultural stereotypes continue to influence employment decisions;
- Intolerance, disrespect, and exclusion along racial and color lines remain in the work environment.
What Will EEOC Do?
To combat race and color discrimination in the 21st century workplace, EEOC will:
- Identify issues, criteria and barriers that contribute to race and color discrimination in the workplace;
- Explore strategies to improve the administrative processing and litigation of race and color discrimination claims;
- Enhance public awareness of the persistence race and color discrimination in employment; and
- Strengthen partnerships with employee advocates, state and local human rights commissions, human resource professionals, and employer groups to address race and color discrimination in the workplace and promote inclusion of employees of all races.
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