News and Issues

Sexual harassment in the workplace can cause harmful psychological, physical, occupational, and economic effects for workers. Several federal laws, executive orders, and agency directives are aimed at preventing and addressing sexual harassment at federal agencies. GAO issued a June 2020 report (GAO-20-387) that reviewed VA's efforts to prevent and address sexual harassment at the agency. In this report, GAO made seven recommendations. This testimony discusses VA's efforts to implement GAO's recommendations to 1) ensure VA's EEO structure is properly aligned; 2) improve the agency's policies to prevent and address sexual harassment of VA employees; 3) collect and analyze data to inform VA about sexual harassment of its employees; and 4) improve relevant training. more »

Among other responsibilities, the Task Force will monitor and evaluate all state and local legislation, regulations, and enforcement actions that threaten to: Infringe on federal legal protections relating to the provision or pursuit of reproductive care; Impair women’s ability to seek reproductive care in states where it is legal; Impair individuals’ ability to inform and counsel each other about the reproductive care that is available in other states; Ban Mifepristone based on disagreement with the FDA’s expert judgment about its safety and efficacy; or Impose criminal or civil liability on federal employees who provide reproductive health services in a manner authorized by federal law. more »

“The Americans with Disabilities Act embodies a national promise to eliminate discriminatory barriers and support full participation, community integration, independent living and economic self-sufficiency for people with disabilities,” said Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. “We will continue using this bedrock civil rights law to eliminate barriers and safeguard the rights of people with disabilities across the country.” Since November 2021, the department has reached settlement agreements with CVS Pharmacy Inc., Hy-Vee Inc., The Kroger Co., Meijer Inc. and Rite Aid Corporation to ensure that people with disabilities can book COVID-19 vaccine appointments and obtain vaccine information online. more »

"As past stories covering the Vintage 2021 estimates have suggested, domestic migration during this time period is likely driving the change. These patterns indicate that although young working-age adults are leaving the central counties of these large metro areas, they are simply relocating to other counties in the country. This may be related to the COVID-19 pandemic that created conditions enabling many workers to work from home and may have given these younger working-age adults the flexibility to relocate from areas with high concentrations of job opportunities to places with a lower cost of living or other quality of life improvements."   more »