Below is a review of the posts on Facebook and LinkedIn from the past week. You can check out the full posts by clicking on the links.
NOTE: remember that we now post every other day.
The posts on Monday 2/2/2026, here and here, warned that EEOC recent move will consolidate power in chair, past commissioners warn. Employers must remain alert.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission voted 2-1 recently to remove a set of Biden-era procedures that required the agency to hold discussions about enforcement decisions and provide a guaranteed period of time by which commissioners could review proposed EEOC actions. Think of it as a guard rail of sorts to make sure the facts warrant action.
In no surprise, Chair Andrea Lucas and (fairly new) Commissioner Brittany Panuccio, both Republicans, voted to approve the motion. Commissioner Kalpana Kotagal, the agency’s lone Democrat, voted in opposition.
Also in no surprise, what an EEOC spokesperson said about the vote is in the post.
The EEOC’s former Democratic majority voted to approve the procedures in January 2025, prior to Trump’s inauguration, to memorialize operating procedures that EEOC has used for decades. The first of the two procedures allowed each commissioner a set time frame to review proposed actions, from 30 days for consideration of proposed guidance and regulations to 10 days for votes on whether to approve commission lawsuits. Detail on the second procedure is in the post – and is the real guard rail.
Former EEO leaders noted that rescission of the voting procedures raises significant concerns because it consolidates authority in the Chair in a manner that is inconsistent with the statutory framework governing EEOC decision-making and will undermine the caliber of that decision-making.
The vote also drew criticism from the National Women’s Law Center, which addressed the vote in a January 12 letter to Lucas (linked in the post) in which it called the proposed rescission “a power grab” that would undermine EEOC’s integrity. The letter specifically pointed to two things that should alarm (but not surprise) employers given the Chair’s continual comments and statements – see the post. A statement issued by the NWLC is also in the post.
The EEOC is scheduled to meet on January 22 to discuss various topics including that noted in the post. Per EEOC, the meeting will be open to the public.
TAKEAWAY: This action by the EEOC continues the dismantling of various worker protections by the current administration – employers must remain vigilant so they know what might put the in the EEOC’s crosshairs.
The posts on Wednesday 2/4/2026, here and here, told us an HOA sues adjacent commercial property over 25-year drainage problem. In Pennsylvania the scenario often rises with a new community draining into an existing condominium or HOA.
Here the Fairfield at Boca Association filed a multi-count lawsuit against the owners and managers of Boca Center, alleging that a neglected drainage system is causing significant physical damage to the residential community. The complaint claims that stormwater runoff from the neighboring commercial property has led to severe erosion, washouts, and exposed pipes along the HOA’s lake banks.
At the heart of the dispute is a 1999 perpetual drainage easement that allows the commercial property to discharge water into a retention pond on HOA land. The problem arises because of the language – or in this case, lack of language – in the original document; see the post. HOA lawyers argue that because the commercial defendants are the sole users of that drainage outfall, they should bear the full burden of repair costs (the current amount of which is noted in the post).
The HOA says it first warned the defendants about the deteriorating conditions (which would necessitate repair) in August 2024. But despite an initial response in December 2024 in which the commercial defendants acknowledged their reimbursement obligations and promised an engineering inspection, the HOA says no repairs have been made. How the lawsuit describes the current state of the property (ugh) is in the post.
TAKEAWAY: Words matter – legal documents should be carefully drafted and reviewed (preferably by community association lawyers) to ensure they provide for what the parties intend and what complies with applicable law and the HOA’s governing documents.
The posts on Friday 2/6/2026, here and here, noted Walmart settles EEOC charge it illegally revoked a worker’s disability accommodation. Less expensive than what a jury verdict or judicial award might have been. Let’s look at the facts
Walmart will pay $60,000 to settle the EEOC’s allegations that it revoked a worker’s disability accommodations and then fired her for insubordination. The EEOC press release is linked in the post.
Since her hiring in 2017 the worker, a stocker, had received a reasonable accommodation to perform her tasks according to a routine which accommodated her cognitive disabilities. More details are in the EEOC complaint that is linked in the post. But EEOC alleged that after a management change in 2020, the worker’s tasks were changed daily and she was fired after she resisted an attempt to redirect her work.
As part of settlement (by consent decree which is also linked in the post), Walmart will provide the non-monetary relief noted in the post in addition to paying the $60,000. Of course Walmart did not admit liability or unlawful conduct as part of the settlement.
It is not uncommon for a change in management to cause an employer to run afoul of discrimination laws, especially when an accommodation that had been in place without issue — sometimes for years — is suddenly revoked. For example, Marriott settled a lawsuit in December in which EEOC alleged that after a change in management, Marriott revoked a worker’s accommodation to have days off to observe her Sabbath. See the post for more details on that settlement.
Likewise, in 2020 a Trump International Hotel worker filed suit after her religious accommodation to not work on Sundays that had been in place for years was no longer honored due to schedule changes made by a new supervisor. What happened there is in the post.
The Job Accommodation Network (a great resource on all matters involving disability accommodation) has reminded employers that their obligation to engage in the informal, interactive process is ongoing. More detail on how long that obligation lasts, and what it encompasses, is in the post.
TAKEAWAY: Employers must be aware of their obligation to accommodate a disabled employee and what the accommodation process entails. Involving an employment lawyer is a good idea.