Proposed EEO-1 Pay Data

Introduction

On February 1, the EEOC proposed to revise the annual EEO-1 report to require reporting of compensation data, a copy of which is here (https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2016-02-01/pdf/2016-01544.pdf).  A copy of the proposed, multi-page form (“Component 2” as referenced in the Notice) is here (http://www.eeoc.gov/employers/eeo1survey/2016_new_survey_2.cfm).  NILG will file a comment prior to the April 1 deadline.  Your input, via the survey below, is critical to this process. 

Background

The proposed EEO-1 revisions would require all employers with 100 or more employees to report the total number of employees by race and gender who had W-2 earnings falling into each of 12 pay bands within each of the 10 existing EEO-1 Categories.  W-2 earnings would be reported for the 12-month period prior to the EEO-1 workforce snapshot date, not calendar year W-2 earnings.  Also required will be the total number of hours worked in the 12-month period by each race and gender group in each pay band within each EEO-1 Category.  Employers will also provide their NAICS industry code.  No other pay factor data would to explain pay disparities.  The pay data report requirement would go into effect in July 2017. 

In summary, the proposal raises questions on which we would like your input regarding:

·         Utility:  Will the pay data allow EEOC to achieve the stated goal of reliably identifying for further investigation employers with race/gender pay disparities indicative of discrimination?  And, has EEOC provided enough information to make that decision? 
 
In 2012, the National Academy of Sciences issued a report, “Collecting Compensation Data from Employers,” addressing EEOC/OFCCP’s plan to collect pay data (“NAS Report”).  A summary of the Report is available here (http://www.nap.edu/).  The Report made a number of recommendations.  One of the issues NILG may want to address is whether EEOC has adequately addressed the NAS Report concerns. 

 ·         Burden:  Has the EEOC accurately measured the burden on employers and is the burden too great as compared to the utility of the data to EEOC and OFCCP? 

The proposed EEO-1 form would contain 3,660 cells, which is a 1,933% increase in data collection.  For many employers, reporting may be complicated because the required W-2 data reside in a different system than HRIS data, and will need to be merged. 
EEOC historically has estimated the burden on employers as 3.4 hours per EEO-1 establishment report.  The EEOC asserts that, due to electronic filing of reports and HRIS data systems, employers can develop any number of establishment reports in the same time that it could develop one report in the past. Thus, EEOC now estimates the burden as 3.4 hours per employer, regardless of the number of establishment reports the employer must file. EEOC further estimates eight hours of initial programming time per employer to set up the new queries necessary to compile the pay data and hours worked for reporting.

·         Data Confidentiality and Security:  Has EEOC adequately addressed data confidentiality and security concerns and can those concerns be addressed while preserving the value of the data? 
1.What level are you in your organization? 
2.What is your firm size?
3.How many locations does your employer report in the EEO-1 reports?
4.is your company a federal contractor?
5.What compensation data source should be used in the amended EEO-1 form?
6.Should an annual W-2 earnings (the one an employee would normally receive by January 31 each year) be used for reporting purposes or should a W-2 report created for the day of reporting be used for this report?
7.Should the EEO-1 report timing be changed to a January 1 snapshot with a March 31 reporting date instead of a September 30 reporting date to capture all active employee information (including new hires and acquisitions) for previous year?
8.If the amended EEO-1 includes a requirement to report on the number of hours an employee worked in a 12 month period, what data should be used?
9.The EEOC is proposing 12 band levels for reporting in each EEO category.  Do you agree or disagree?
10.How many employees assist in completing the current EEO-1 report?
11.Do you outsource your EEO-1 reporting currently? 
12.Based on the proposed changes to the EEO-1 reporting, will you continue to complete the EEO-1 reporting as before? 
13.The EEOC estimates that the existing EEO-1 form take approximately 3.4 hours to complete, regardless of firm size.  Do you agree with that estimate?
14.How long do you estimate it took your firm to prepare its 2015 EEO-1 filing?
15.Is the production of your W-2s outsourced?
16.How much time do you estimate it takes to create a W-2?
17.Is the data required for W-2 creation, hours worked,  and employee race/gender information resident on?
18.Do your system vendors provide timely system updates to meet changing statutory requirements, such as the EEOC’s proposed amendments to the EEO-1 submission would represent?
19.Will your vendor and/or IT staff be able to reconfigure your current EEO-1 production system in sufficient time to meet the 2017 Deadline?
20.What are the projected costs of reconfiguring your EEO-1 production system to meet the 2017 deadline?
21.Do you agree with the EEOC that employers will be able to supply W-2 type data in the July-August time frame without significant burden because pay, hours work and employee race/gender data is available in IT systems?
22.Do you agree with the EEOC estimate that the additional EEO-1 pay data reporting will take 3.6 hours to complete?
23.Are you concerned that pay data collected by the EEOC will not be handled confidentially?
24.What steps , if any,  do you recommend be taken to safeguard the confidentiality of pay data provided via the proposed EEO-1 report amendment (check the most appropriate option)?
25.Should the EEOC provide additional details about the  statistical review it will conduct and what thresholds EEOC will apply to identify employers for further pay investigation? 
26.Do you agree that the proposed EEO-1 compensation will help employers conduct effective pay analyses? 
27.Do you agree that the proposed EEO-1 pay data report will help the EEOC and OFCCP identify pay disparities warranting further investigation?
28.Do you believe that the burden that the proposed EEO-1 compensation data collection would impose on employers is justified by an increased ability to identify pay disparities?
29.What pay data report issues/questions would you like the NILG to address during the upcoming pay webinar?