Workplace discrimination claims are not slowing down — they are accelerating. The EEOC secured $660 million for workers in fiscal year 2025, its second-highest annual recovery on record, with $528 million recovered before a single case reached court. In fiscal year 2024, the EEOC received 88,531 new discrimination charges — a 9.2% increase and the third consecutive year of growth — after an overall 44% surge in discrimination charges between 2021 and 2024. And the trend shows no sign of slowing: race discrimination claims rose 31% between 2022 and 2023, color discrimination claims rose 42%, and sex discrimination claims rose 28%. Retaliation — which now accompanies nearly half of all EEOC filings — remained the most commonly alleged basis across every category. Every one of these charges represents an employer who made a preventable mistake.
In 2026, the discrimination landscape is more complex and more dangerous than ever. The Supreme Court's unanimous 2025 decision in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services eliminated the heightened evidentiary burden that majority-group plaintiffs previously faced — meaning white employees, male employees, and other majority-group workers now have the same access to discrimination claims as any other protected class. The EEOC's current chair has explicitly solicited discrimination charges from white male workers on social media. The DOJ's Civil Rights Fraud Initiative is actively investigating DEI policies under the False Claims Act. Religious accommodation claims are under expanded scrutiny following Groff v. DeJoy. And 60% of all employment discrimination claims originate from employees who were fired or laid off — meaning every termination decision is a potential claim.
In 2026, the discrimination landscape is more complex and more dangerous than ever. The Supreme Court's unanimous 2025 decision in Ames v. Ohio Department of Youth Services eliminated the heightened evidentiary burden that majority-group plaintiffs previously faced — meaning white employees, male employees, and other majority-group workers now have the same access to discrimination claims as any other protected class. The EEOC's current chair has explicitly solicited discrimination charges from white male workers on social media. The DOJ's Civil Rights Fraud Initiative is actively investigating DEI policies under the False Claims Act. Religious accommodation claims are under expanded scrutiny following Groff v. DeJoy. And 60% of all employment discrimination claims originate from employees who were fired or laid off — meaning every termination decision is a potential claim.
WHY SHOULD YOU ATTEND?
Critical Compliance Areas This Session Addresses:- The top discrimination claim categories in 2026 — and the employer mistakes driving each one
- How the Ames v. Ohio ruling expands who can sue and what it means for your policies
- DEI policy risk in 2026 — what the DOJ and EEOC are scrutinizing and what to do now
- Documentation failures that destroy employer defenses across every claim type
- How to build an organization-wide discrimination risk management strategy
AREA COVERED
- The Top Discrimination Claim Categories in 2026 — What Is Driving Each Onery
- The Ames v. Ohio Ruling — What It Means for Every Employer in 2026:
- Documentation Failures That Destroy Employer Defenses:
- Disability Discrimination & ADA Interactive Process Failures:
- The Ames v. Ohio Supreme Court ruling means majority-group employees can now sue for discrimination on equal footing —
- 60% of all discrimination claims come from employees who were fired or laid off • DEI policies are under active federal investigation in 2026 — .
- Building an Organization-Wide Discrimination Risk Management Strategy
WHO WILL BENEFIT?
- All Employers
- Business Owners
- Company Leadership
- Compliance professionals
- HR Professionals
Critical Compliance Areas This Session Addresses:
- The top discrimination claim categories in 2026 — and the employer mistakes driving each one
- How the Ames v. Ohio ruling expands who can sue and what it means for your policies
- DEI policy risk in 2026 — what the DOJ and EEOC are scrutinizing and what to do now
- Documentation failures that destroy employer defenses across every claim type
- How to build an organization-wide discrimination risk management strategy
- The Top Discrimination Claim Categories in 2026 — What Is Driving Each Onery
- The Ames v. Ohio Ruling — What It Means for Every Employer in 2026:
- Documentation Failures That Destroy Employer Defenses:
- Disability Discrimination & ADA Interactive Process Failures:
- The Ames v. Ohio Supreme Court ruling means majority-group employees can now sue for discrimination on equal footing —
- 60% of all discrimination claims come from employees who were fired or laid off • DEI policies are under active federal investigation in 2026 — .
- Building an Organization-Wide Discrimination Risk Management Strategy
- All Employers
- Business Owners
- Company Leadership
- Compliance professionals
- HR Professionals