Joint Center Submits Comments to the EEOC Urging Them to Withdraw the Proposed Rule to Rescind Requirements for Filing EEO Demographic Data Collection Reports

The Joint Center submitted comments to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) urging them to withdraw the proposed rule to rescind requirements for filing EEO demographic data collection reports.

The proposed rule to eliminate EEO reporting requirements would dismantle one of the foundational pillars of America’s civil rights data infrastructure — an infrastructure that has been built, tested, and relied upon across more than a dozen presidential administrations. It would strip the EEOC of its primary tool for identifying discriminatory patterns, deprive researchers and advocates of irreplaceable employer-level data, and send a devastating signal that the federal government is retreating from its commitment to equal opportunity in the workplace.

For more than five decades, the Joint Center has relied on disaggregated workforce data to produce the research, analysis, and policy recommendations that inform policymakers, empower communities, and hold institutions accountable. From our 1978 studies of Black federal employment to our 2026 State of the Dream report documenting signs of a Black recession, the through-line is clear: data makes discrimination visible, and visibility is the prerequisite for justice.

Read the comments here, or below.