Biz Coach Terry Corbell: HR Strategies to Avoid EEOC Crosshairs as Discrimination Suits Mount

Nov. 14, 2009 - PRLog -- The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is on a recruiting drive to hire employees to keep up with caseloads in the wake of countless discrimination suits filed by workers, according to Seattle Biz Coach Terry Corbell. He provides13 strategies for employers to avoid such headaches (http://www.bizcoachinfo.com).

The EEOC Web site, www.eeoc.gov, is recruiting employees from attorneys to IT personnel.

“In 2007, aggregate monetary damages awarded to workers and their attorneys totaled $54.8 million,” Mr. Corbell says. “But last year the EEOC charged 95,402 companies and damages totaled $102.2 million, and the epidemic of lawsuits is continuing in 2009.”

You can see the statistics at www.eeoc.gov, but The Biz Coach says the federal filings are apparently just a tip of the iceberg.

“State courts across the nation are filled with discrimination cases, too, because complainants want to avoid the federal limits on monetary damages,” Mr. Corbell asserts.

He says the sour economy is a factor. There is no let up in EEOC complaints as countless employees fearing layoffs are filing complaints as insurance. That includes government and private-sector workers, alike.

“Historically, high-profile harassment cases are a catalyst for additional complaints by other workers,” he adds. “EEOC cases also lead to declining morale, retention problems and poor productivity, which are also costly.”

So The Biz Coach provides six tips for sole proprietors and micro-companies, and 13 strategies for larger businesses ranging from the application process to terminations.

For full details and his HR strategies, see “Managers Be Careful – EEOC Discrimination Suits Are Skyrocketing,” at http://www.bizcoachinfo.com/archives/1973.

Mr. Corbell’s expertise is why the New York Times featured him twice. First, columnist Brent Bowers profiled him ("Been There... Done That... Here's How - New York Times"). Mr. Bowers also asked him to take questions from the newspaper’s readers. It resulted in an avalanche of readers seeking Mr. Corbell’s business counsel ("Advice on Taking an Entrepreneurial Leap - New York Times").

In addition to his Web site, The Biz Coach is also published on the Money News page at Seattle's CBS-TV affiliate, KIRO. KIRO is the "2009 National Edward R. Murrow Award Winner for Overall Excellence." Mr. Corbell has written about 500 business-coaching columns since 2001 for several media Web sites.

Mr. Corbell has provided confidential business solutions and best-management practices for Seattle-area companies ranging from high-tech to professional service firms, and for the public sector since 1992 (http://www.bizcoachinfo.com/our-services).

As managing member of CMS Associates LLC, he is developer of The CMS Approach –  strategic proprietary systems and best-practices management.

Mr. Corbell is writing a book tentatively entitled, “How to Watch Your Back in the Jungle – Avoiding Business Predators.”

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Biz Coach Terry Corbell is a business-performance consultant and profit professional. As a longtime media columnist, he publishes performance-enhancing strategies at The Biz Coach: http://www.bizcoachinfo.com, Proven Solutions for Maximum Profits.