Statement of the National Partnership for Women & Families and the National Women’s Law Center
WASHINGTON, D.C. – April 24, 2025 – As advocates deeply committed to civil rights and gender justice, the National Partnership for Women & Families and the National Women’s Law Center denounce the appalling – but not surprising – decision made by Andrea Lucas, the acting chair of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to hire staff hostile to civil rights protections for LGBTQI+ workers.
“Lucas’ choice for chief of staff, Shannon Royce – who has publicly expressed hostility to LGBTQI+ rights – reflects just the latest example of how the agency has abandoned its mission to protect all workers from unlawful employment discrimination. Lucas has already relegated all charges of discrimination filed by transgender workers to the lowest priority and has directed the agency to drop its own lawfully opened cases on behalf of transgender workers.
“Since day one of this Trump administration, Andrea Lucas’ actions have signaled not only an abandonment of the agency’s mission to prevent and remedy unlawful employment discrimination and advance equal opportunity for all but also an outright hostility to the rights of a vulnerable community.
“Lucas’ claims that her actions are ‘defending women’ ring hollow when her attacks on transgender workers do nothing to make women safer or address the widespread discrimination and harassment they continue to face in the workplace. All workers should be able to depend on the EEOC to protect their rights. Picking favorites to support and others to ignore is inconsistent with the EEOC’s broad mandate to rigorously enforce all of the anti-discrimination protections within its jurisdiction. By failing to uphold the rights of transgender workers, Lucas undermines the rights of all workers who face discrimination based on gender and sex stereotypes.
“The Supreme Court has been crystal clear that it is illegal to discriminate against a person simply because they are transgender. Transgender workers are protected under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and no action by the Acting Chair can change that.”
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Media Contact:
Gail Zuagar
National Partnership for Women & Families
Email
202-986-2600
Olympia Feil
National Women’s Law Center
Email
