EEOC to visit 100 Cape businesses today, Wednesday

Rather than wait for small businesses to make a mistake, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is sending five of its staff workers to visit with small businesses in Cape Girardeau today and Wednesday, the federal law enforcement agency announced Monday.

The visits are intended to help the businesses to stay clear of violations.

EEOC staff will visit as many as 100 small businesses, according to a news release. The employers that will be visited have not been notified in advance, and no particular type of business is being targeted, according to the release. EEOC's only objective is to work with smaller employers, which are more likely to be in need of assistance than larger companies.

"EEOC is encouraging employers to get out in front, and do everything they can to stop discrimination before it occurs in their workplace," said EEOC's St. Louis district director Lynn Bruner. "We're trying to help employers design grievance systems, and take other necessary steps to allow their employees to resolve complaints internally. We're also advising employers to guard against retaliation whenever one of their employees voices a complaint."

This information sharing is part of EEOC's program on "Proactive Prevention."

EEOC is the federal agency that enforces several laws against employment discrimination.