EEOC Proposes Procedural and Administrative Regulations on
Genetic Information

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has released proposed regulations on procedural and administrative issues under the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA). The proposal would amend existing regulations to reflect GINA and update the language in the regulations.

President Bush signed GINA into law on May 21, 2008. The act protects job applicants, current and former employees, labor union members, and apprentices and trainees from discrimination based on their genetic information. GINA applies to employers with 15 or more employees, employment agencies, labor unions and joint labor-management training programs, as well as federal employers. Its provisions regarding unlawful employment practices take effect on Nov. 21, 2009.

In April, the EEOC issued proposed regulations under GINA that addressed GINA’s applicability. In these recently released proposed regulations, the EEOC adds references to GINA in its procedural and administrative regulations, which address notice of the right to sue, filing complaints and exemptions. GINA has been added to the regulations covering procedural and administrative rules for Title VII of the Civil Rights Act (discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin), the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and other such laws.

The EEOC also replaced outdated terms such as "handicap" and "handicaps" with "disability" and "disabilities" throughout the regulations.