Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

Established by Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, EEOC receives and investigates charges of employment discrimination based on race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, or gender identity. Besides its commissioners and staff, it consists of state and local Fair Employment Practices Agencies. It monitors workplaces with twenty-five or more employees, including labor unions, educational institutions, and governments. It can recommend that the Department of Justice file antidiscrimination suits. Clifford L. Alexander, its first black chairman, was appointed in 1967.