As your company grows and exceeds certain size thresholds, you may have more reporting requirements from the U.S. government. Depending on the number of employees you have, one of these requirements might be filing an EEO-1 report.
Filing an EEO-1 report can be tricky, especially if it’s your first time submitting one. And because there are penalties for not filing an EEO-1 report or for providing inaccurate filings, it’s important to understand what you’re doing.
In this blog, we’ll explain and simplify the complexities of EEO-1 reporting requirements so you can stay compliant at your organization.
What is the purpose of an EEO-1 report?
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 19671 and the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972 prohibit employment discrimination based on race/ethnicity, religion, gender, and national origin. To help ensure that workplaces are compliant with these objectives, employers must fill out an EEO-1 report, also known as a Standard Form 100.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)2 enforces provisions of the Civil Rights Act, takes action against violators, and requires annual data collection from covered employers. Their website also provides helpful resources to help you file your report.
The EEO-1 report requires companies to report on demographic workforce data broken down by:
- Race/ethnicity
- Sex/gender
- Job category
Consider annual EEO-1 reports as a roadmap or snapshot of your workforce’s demographics at a specific time. The snapshot can help you understand and take steps to address any inequities. After all, having a diverse company workforce helps your business create a more positive and inclusive culture.
EEO-1 reporting also helps build a broader picture of diversity and opportunity across all U.S. employers by providing context for conversations around sex discrimination, affirmative action, and pay equity. It also helps create more businesses that are equal-opportunity employers.
Who must complete an EEO-1 report?
All private employers with 15 or more employees must comply with Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to be an equal-opportunity employer. But only some private employers have to report on EEO-1 data.
You must file an EEO-1 report if you are a private-sector employer who has:
- 100 or more employees, also known as an applicable large employer (ALE)
- This excludes state and local governments, public schools, higher education institutions, American Indian or Alaska Native tribes, and tax-exempt private membership clubs other than labor organizations
- Fewer than 100 employees, but another company with more than 100 employees owns or controls yours (i.e., a parent company)
All federal contractors must also fill out an EEO-1 report if they have:
- 50 or more employees and are first-tier subcontractors, and have a federal contract, subcontract, or purchase order amounting to $50,000
- Serve as a depository of government funds in any amount
- Act as an issuing and paying agent for U.S. Savings Bonds and Savings Notes
When considering the information above, remember that only employers with organizations operating within the U.S. must fill out the EEO-1 form.
Information to include on your EEO-1 form
EEO-1 reports must include information from a demographic workforce snapshot pay period, which is any pay period from October through December of the current year. Only part-time and full-time employees on payroll count when determining employees for the period.
Employers should include the following information on their EEO-1 report:
- The number of reports that the company will file
- Company information
- Employer Identification Number (EIN)
- Previous year’s total
- All employee demographic information listed by location, job, gender, ethnicity, and race categories
- EEO-1 reports list available employee job categories as executive-level officials and managers, mid-level officials and managers, professionals, technicians, sales workers, administrative support workers, craft workers, operatives, laborers, and service workers
- Employers must submit a demographic breakdown of their workforce by race and ethnicity categories, which are White, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, American Indian or Native Alaskan, Asian, Hispanic or Latino, or Black or African American
- Date of payroll periods used
- The date, your title, and your signature
- Your contact information
The last but critical step is to state if you’re a single- or multi-establishment employer. The EEOC defines a single-establishment company as an organization that conducts business at only one physical address.
A multi-establishment company does business at two or more physical addresses. A single-establishment company is only required to submit one EEO-1 Component 1 report. If you’re a multi-establishment employer, you have a few added tasks.
If you’re a multi-establishment employer, you’ll also need to submit each of these EEO-1 reports:
- Consolidated Report (Type 2): This report includes all employees.
- Headquarters Report (Type 3): This report contains information about the headquarters.
- Establishment Report (Type 4): Each establishment with 50 or more employees must submit this report.
Multi-establishment employers with fewer than 50 employees must submit one of the following:
- Establishment List (Type 6): This includes the establishment name, address, and total employee number for each physical location with fewer than 50 employees.
- Establishment Report (Type 8): Every establishment with fewer than 50 employees must submit this report.
Once you have completed filling out your required forms, you can file your EEO-1 report with the EEOC.
How to file your EEO-1 report
The filing process for the EEO-1 Component 1 report is on the EEOC website, which includes relevant materials, additional instructions, and FAQs. First-time filers can complete a simple online submission form to create an account and file their annual reports.
Use the simple steps below to file your EEO-1 report:
- Register on the EEOC’s website
- Collect all relevant information for your EEO-1 report
- Fill out your EEO-1 form
- Submit your completed report to the EEOC by the indicated deadline
- Keep a copy of your annual EEO-1 form in your records for at least one year for informational purposes
You can submit your data with a paper report if you don’t want to use the online EEO-1 Component 1 data filing system. But the EEOC prefers eligible filers to use the website for prompt filings, so paper forms are only available upon request and approval.
When is the EEO-1 report due?
The deadline to submit your EEO-1 report can vary from year to year. Sometimes the EEOC grants an extension, such as the extended deadlines during the COVID-19 pandemic. Eligible filers can also request a one-off 30-day extension.
The next EEO-1 data collection period will start in the fall of 2023. The EEO-1 website3 will list updates on data collection, the opening date, and other requirements for organizations as they become available.
Who should take responsibility for filing the EEO-1 report?
Your company’s HR team will likely be responsible for completing the EEO-1 report and requesting filing updates since they have most of the required information.
The annual EEO-1 reporting process isn’t only crucial for upholding an ethical organization and creating a culture of compliance—it’s mandatory. That’s why the penalties for not filing or submitting inaccurate reports are significant.
Your HR compliance team should prioritize reporting accurate and timely filings so that you and your leadership team are confident that the data submitted for your organization is correct.
What happens if you don’t file an EEO-1 report?
There aren’t any direct financial penalties for not filing an EEO-1 Component 1 report. But complying with the requirement is in your company’s best interests.
Under federal law, the EEOC can compel an employer to file the EEO-1 report by obtaining a court order from the U.S. District Court. A judge can hold an employer in contempt if they don’t comply with the order. Federal contractor penalties vary. But potential penalties may include termination of the federal government contract and removing them from future contracts.
Additionally, false statements on an EEO-1 report can subject eligible employers to fines, imprisonment of up to five years, or both.
A more practical consequence of failing to file an EEO-1 report for one or more years is that an employer can’t comply with federal agency enforcement efforts and can lose credibility in an investigation.
For example, if an employee submits a discrimination or harassment complaint about your company to the EEOC, one of the first things agency representatives will do is review your company’s EEO-1 data. Depending on their findings, your company’s compliance history could impact the outcome of the investigation.
Conclusion
EEO-1 reporting is an essential annual requirement and human resource task for companies of a specific size. EEOC guidelines can be complex, but not completing the required report can put your business at risk. And because EEO-1 data tracks compliance to improve inclusion efforts, it’s best practice for companies to comply.
If you’re an ALE, there are many other federal regulations that impact your business. One such regulation is the Affordable Care Act’s employer mandate. If you need a cost-effective health benefit to comply with this requirement, or want to switch from your current group health policy, we can help.
A health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) is an excellent way to provide a compliant, affordable health benefit that supports your employees’ diverse needs. PeopleKeep can help you manage your HRA, giving you more time to take care of your business’s other compliance obligations. Schedule a call with a personalized benefits advisor today to learn more.
This article was originally published on March 9, 2022. It was last updated on July 28, 2023.
