The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reports that, in fiscal year 2015, 44.5% of the charges it received alleged retaliation. That makes retaliation the most popular charge it received by a large margin. Previous statistics showed that retaliation claims were even more popular at the Department of Fair Employment and Housing – the EEOC’s California counterpart.

Copyright: bds / 123RF Stock Photo
Copyright: bds / 123RF Stock Photo

A lesson for employers here is that successfully addressing a discrimination complaint is only half the battle. Plenty of deficient discrimination claims have led to valid retaliation claims.

Expect retaliation claims to remain popular. Proactive employers should take steps now to minimize their risk. Last September, I discussed these six steps employers can take to avoid retaliation claims.