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President Joe Biden Abruptly Terminates EEOC’s General Counsel

 

Stop me if this headline sounds vaguely familiar.  (Readers might recall that on his first day on the job back in January, President Joe Biden terminated National Labor Relations Board General Counsel Peter Robb (“Robb”) after Robb refused to resign.)

Last week, President Biden abruptly terminated Equal Employment Opportunity Commission General Counsel Sharon Gustafson (“Gustafson”) after Gustafson also refused to resign.  Like Robb, Gustafson was a President Donald Trump appointment that still had time left in her term.  (Gustafson’s term was set to run through 2023.)

The decision to terminate Gustafson when she still had several years left in her term is somewhat profound and further indication that the Biden administration is seeking to aggressively change course in both how the NLRB and EEOC operate.  It has been considered standard practice to allow appointments from prior administrations to complete their terms before being replaced.  However, it appears the Biden administration is ready to play hardball and wasting no time in doing so.


For additional information:  https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/biden-to-fire-trump-eeoc-general-counsel-who-refused-to-resign

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