The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has established the Office of Enterprise Data and Analytics (OEDA) to give businesses new tools for planning and operations. The law firm Jackson Lewis likes what it sees.
The goal of OEDA is to provide timely, accurate, and bias-free data and information to prevent unlawful employment discrimination and improve organizational performance.
Attorney Eric Felsberg said Jackson Lewis’ Data Analytics Group was invited to EEOC’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. to attend a listening session about the new service.
“The launch of the OEDA should prompt employers to reconsider waiting to leverage data and analytics in managing their workplace,” he said. “Using data and analytics in the workplace is not a passing fad.”
The office is divided into four divisions.
The Business Operations and Organizational Performance Division will oversee business operations and enhance the office’s transparency and effectiveness.
The Data Development and Information Products Division will develop information products and be involved with data collection and survey methodology. It also will support EEOC charge-handling.
The Information and Data Access Division will oversee data governance and policy, and provide research and information services in support of enforcement litigation.
The Data Analytics Division will provide systemic investigations analytical support and analytics on various data to identify geographic, industry and other drivers of discrimination charges and emerging trends.
“While access to new collections of data and data products from the EEOC will be of great value, employers should take note that these and additional resources also will be at the disposal of and potentially bolster enforcement efforts,” Felsberg explained. “Therefore, it is critical for employers to embrace the use of data to help analyze and manage the workplace and to better identify positive and negative trends.”
