The current EEO-1 filing for 2019 and 2020 has experienced multiple delays, first in 2020 due to the COVID-19 public health emergency, and then in 2021 to announce site delays until April 2021 and data upload delays until May 2021. The site is now open, and the deadline of July 19th is quickly approaching, but employers are struggling with new delays that prevent them from even beginning the filing process.
Communication DelaysIn order to file EEO-1 reports, many employers need some measure of EEOC support to move forward. For example, if an employer has experienced an acquisition, merger, or spinoff, the employer cannot file without EEOC technical support. Similarly, if an employer did not receive the EEOC notification letter in late April which contained an account passcode, the employer cannot set up an account in the new EEOC system. EEOC letters were only sent via mail and the passcode cannot be retrieved electronically. When an employer needs assistance, the employer MUST either submit an inquiry through the “Contact Us” form, email, or call. Undoubtedly EEOC and its vendor NORC are receiving a lot of inquiries, but it appears that employers are experiencing support “wait times” of at least four weeks. A client of DCI has been waiting since mid-May to receive support to retrieve their company passcode, because the original notification letter was not received. This is not an isolated incident. Several other clients reached out to EEOC for support regarding passcodes as well as acquisitions and spinoffs in late May and early June and have not received a response.
Approval Delays
The data upload feature, which many employers utilize, now contains a new step in the filing process. After a file has been uploaded and submitted to the EEO-1 system, the employer must wait to have the file reviewed by EEOC prior to proceeding with the filing. This new step was unexpected as this review period has never been required in the past and it is not described in the EEO-1 User Guide or other online materials. This new review period should take 1-2 business days, but that is currently not the case. Two DCI clients uploaded 2019 files on June 3rd and 4th, neither with data errors nor warnings in the initial upload; however, both files were under review for 5-6 business days. This is a potential problem as employers must upload, review, and certify their 2019 reports before they can begin to file their 2020 reports (which we expect may experience the same review delays).
DCI is continuing to monitor the situation and will provide updates as we know more.
By Amanda Bowman, M.S., Associate Principal Consultant
