On May 20, 2025, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Acting Chair Andrea Lucas announced that the 2024 EEO-1 Component 1 data collection is now open and will close on June 24, 2025.
This gives covered employers just five weeks to file.
Overview of EEO-1 Reporting Obligations
The EEO-1 Component 1 Report, also known as the Employer Information Report, is a mandatory annual filing that captures workforce demographic data. Covered private-sector employers with 100 or more employees, and certain federal contractors with 50 or more employees meeting specific criteria, must submit demographic workforce information categorized by job classification, race/ethnicity, and sex. The data is used by the EEOC and, in years past, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) to support enforcement of federal anti-discrimination laws.
As in prior years, the 2024 filing will be based on a “snapshot” of the workforce employed on a given date during the fourth quarter of 2024—employers may choose any single payroll period between October 1 and December 31, 2024, to represent their workforce. As a Fact Sheet published by the EEOC explains, employers are not obligated to rely on the same snapshot period reported upon in previous years.
Removal of Non-Binary Reporting Option
A significant change in data collection, as explained in the 2024 Instruction Booklet, is the elimination of the option to voluntarily report non-binary employees. This change stems from Executive Order (EO) 14168, titled Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government, issued by President Trump on January 20, 2025.
EO 14168 mandates that federal forms collecting sex-related data only provide options for “male” and “female,” and prohibits collecting gender identity information. To align with this directive, the EEOC revised the Instruction Booklet to specify that EEO-1 Component 1 reports only allow binary sex designations. All mentions of non-binary reporting that were found in prior versions of the booklet —including footnotes and narrative comment options—have been removed.
Unresolved Issues for Federal Contractors
A point of potential confusion in the EEOC’s 2024 Instruction Booklet relates to its continued reliance on Executive Order 11246 for determining the reporting obligations of federal contractors. In January 2025, as we explained here, EO 14173 revoked EO 11246, which previously served as the legal foundation for requiring certain contractors with 50 to 99 employees to file EEO-1 reports.
Despite the revocation, the 2024 Instruction Booklet continues to reference EO 11246 and its implementing regulations, without addressing the legal uncertainty now surrounding the filing obligation for smaller federal contractors. The EEOC’s materials do not clarify whether these employers are still required to report under the now-defunct authority, raising questions about the agency’s position and whether it intends to adopt new legal justifications with respect to federal contractors.
Note that, although a federal judge has blocked OFCCP from enforcing portions of EO 14173 (you can read about that case here), the court’s preliminary injunction is narrow and does not extend to the President’s revocation of EO 11246.
Until clearer guidance is issued, contractors with 50–99 employees may want to err on the side of caution and prepare their data for submission, particularly because the reporting obligation for 2024 may still be considered valid under the framework that existed prior to the new administration’s issuance of EOs and other policy shifts.
Streamlined Enforcement Language
Another quiet but noteworthy update in the 2024 Instruction Booklet is the removal of language related to enforcement, specifically regarding the “Notice of Failure to File” letters the EEOC has previously issued to employers who failed to submit their reports. This omission could indicate a shift in the EEOC’s enforcement priorities or reminder practices. Employers, however, should not interpret this as a relaxation of reporting requirements. Once the June 24, 2025, deadline passes, the Online Filing System (OFS) will close, and any organization that has not timely submitted its report may be out of compliance.
Preparing for the 2024 Filing Period
With the data collection period now underway, employers should begin preparing their EEO-1 Component 1 reports. Past years have seen last-minute bottlenecks on the EEOC’s filing portal, and organizations that delay may risk technical difficulties or submission errors. EEO-1 Component 1 reports must be filed electronically, and the OFS is the only means by which employers can submit data.
Moreover, the window for filing this year is limited: employers have only five weeks to comply, and a 2024 EEO-1 Component 1 Data Collection “Quick Start Guide” Fact Sheet states a precise deadline of 11:00 PM Eastern Time on Tuesday, June 24, 2025.
Covered employers should promptly:
- Confirm their workforce snapshot period falls between October 1 and December 31, 2024.
- Review internal systems to ensure accurate categorization of employees by job classification, race/ethnicity, and binary sex.
- Review pertinent Fact Sheets, FAQs, the OFS User’s Guide.
Federal contractors with 50–99 employees should monitor for clarification regarding their filing obligation, if any, and may wish to consult with counsel to determine whether filing is advisable.
Elizabeth A. Ledkovsky, a Staff Attorney at Epstein Becker Green, contributed to this post.
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