Abstract
The EEOC, too long an overlooked player in the development of employment discrimination policy, has come of age. The Chevron revolution, one that recognizes an implicit delegation of interpretive authority to agencies of the statutes they administer, forces recognition of the EEOC's policymaking role. Chevron's presumption of deference extends to the EEOC under the ADA and ADEA. Furthermore, an examination of the administrative scheme under Title VII demonstrates an implicit delegation of interpretive authority under that statute. Recognizing that the EEOC has been given the lead in clarifying ambiguous statutes allows the law to develop more quickly and more coherently. It places important policy choices into the hands of a politically accountable actor, rather than those of politically unaccountable courts. That is for the good. For too long, employment discrimination policy has been viewed as a dialogue between Congress and the courts, with the agency's role all but disregarded' 4 It is time to acknowledge the "poor, enfeebled thing" that was the EEOC is now the governmental unit primarily responsible for giving meaning to our nation's commitment to civil rights on the job.
Recommended Citation
White, Rebecca Hanner
(1995)
"The EEOC, the Courts, and Employment
Discrimination Policy: Recognizing the
Agency's Leading Role in Statutory
Interpretation,"
Utah Law Review: Vol. 1995:
No.
1, Article 2.
Available at:
https://dc.law.utah.edu/ulr/vol1995/iss1/2