Agency targeting bias against U.S. workers

A recently released document provides new insight into the enforcement priorities of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) under the Trump administration.

Titled “Discrimination Against American Workers Is Against the Law,” the EEOC technical assistance document says the EEOC will come down hard on employers that appear to treat their American workers unfairly. The document points out that it’s illegal to favor foreign-born workers over their U.S. counterparts in regard to recruitment, pay and job assignments.

The EEOC document also notes that organizations shouldn’t treat workers who hold H-1B visas better than those who don’t. And it warns companies not to terminate American employees at a higher rate than their foreign-born crew members.

Shortly thereafter, the EEOC signed a settlement agreement with Seward and Son Planting Co., which the agency says gave more desirable job assignments to non-American workers on several farms near Louise, MS.

According to the EEOC, the farm operation also paid its American workers less money and assigned them to more menial jobs than their foreign counterparts. Seward and Son agreed to pay $150,000 to resolve the national-origin-bias lawsuit.

Based on EEOC v. Seward and Son Planting Co.

(From the December 12, 2025, issue of HR Manager’s Legal Alert for Supervisors. To start your no-obligation trial subscription to the publication right now, please click here.)