WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Committee on Education & Workforce Ranking Member Bobby Scott (D-VA), Representative Melanie Stansbury (D-NM), and Democratic Women’s Caucus Chair Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM) led 236 colleagues in a letter to President Donald Trump in response to his unprecedented and unlawful dismissal of Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC) Commissioners Charlotte Burrows and Jocelyn Samuels.

“We write to express our outrage at your unprecedented dismissal of Commissioners Charlotte Burrows and Jocelyn Samuels of the bipartisan U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission,” the Members wrote. “This unlawful abuse of presidential power undermines the EEOC’s historic independence, harms U.S. workers, and unduly politicizes the Commission’s work. It also impedes the Commission’s ability to fully carry out its critical mission on behalf of the American people. We urge you to swiftly reinstate Commissioners Burrows and Samuels.”

The EEOC was established in 1964 with strong bipartisan support to serve as an independent, multi-member body tasked with preventing and addressing employment discrimination. It is the primary federal law enforcement agency responsible for ensuring that workers are protected against discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, gender identity, and sexual orientation), national origin, age, disability, and genetic information. Workers rely on the EEOC to be a fair and independent body—not one subject to the shifting political whims of the executive branch.

Both Commissioner Burrows and Commissioner Samuels had been confirmed by bipartisan votes of the Senate prior to the start of their terms, with Commissioner Burrows’ term not set to expire until July 2028 and Commissioner Samuels term not set to expire until July 2026.

The Members highlighted the massive return on investment the EEOC delivers for the American people, stating, “From 2014-2024, the EEOC recovered $5.6 billion for workers who were discriminated against under these laws, significantly more than the agency’s appropriations during that time period. For FY 2024, the EEOC secured a record $700 million for workers who experienced discrimination. The EEOC's role in enforcing these protections is essential to ensuring that all workers have a fair chance to obtain employment, provide for their families, and contribute to our economy.”

The Members made clear the illegal firing by President Trump is an intrusion into Congress’ constitutional authority, stating, “The Administration’s firing of Commissioner Burrows and Commissioner Samuels is unprecedented and an intrusion into Congress’ Article I constitutional authority. The appointment of EEOC Commissioners is governed by statute and is designed to ensure the agency’s independence from the executive.  The President appoints Commissioners and the Senate confirms them. That is the beginning and end of the executive’s role in determining who can sit on the Commission and for how long. The law not only expressly requires the Commission to be bipartisan, but it also sets out five-year terms, a design that ensures that Commissioners’ terms run between presidential terms, another purposeful action by Congress to ensure the Commission’s independence.”

“Longstanding Supreme Court precedent also confirms that multi-member independent commissions such as the EEOC enjoy protection from “coercive influence” of the executive. In Humphrey’s Executor v. United States, 295 U.S. 602 (1935), the Supreme Court made clear that members of independent commissions like the EEOC cannot be removed at will by the President. Prior Presidents have agreed; no Commissioner of the EEOC has ever been removed prior to the expiration of their term in the Commission’s 60-year history.”

“Workers deserve to earn a living free from discrimination and feel confident that when they are harmed, they can count on an independent EEOC, not a politicized body, to protect their rights,” the Members concluded. “We urge you to reinstate Commissioner Burrows and Commissioner Samuels, and we look forward to your urgent response.”

The full letter can be read here.

The letter was also signed by: In addition to Representative Nadler, Senator Murray, Ranking Member Scott, Representative Stansbury, and Democratic Women’s Caucus Chair Fernández the letter is signed by Rep. Alma Adams, Rep. Pete Aguilar, Sen. Angela D. Alsobrooks, Rep. Gabe Amo, Rep. Yassamin Ansari, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, Rep. Becca Balint, Rep. Nanette Barragán, Rep. Joyce Beatty, Rep. Wesley Bell, Sen. Michael Bennet, Rep. Ami Bera, Rep. Donald Beyer, Rep. Sanford Bishop, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester, Rep. Suzanne Bonamici, Sen. Cory Booker, Rep. Shontel Brown, Rep. Julia Brownley, Rep. Nikki Budzinski, Rep. Janelle Bynum, Sen. Maria Cantwell, Rep. Salud Carbajal, Rep. André Carson, Rep. Troy Carter, Rep. Greg Casar, Rep. Ed Case, Rep. Sean Casten, Rep. Kathy Castor, Rep. Joaquin Castro, Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, Rep. Judy Chu, Rep. Gilbert Cisneros, Rep. Katherine Clark, Rep. Yvette Clarke, Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, Rep. James E. Clyburn, Rep. Steve Cohen, Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Rep. Herbert Conaway, Rep. Gerald Connolly, Sen. Christopher Coons, Rep. J. Correa, Rep. Jim Costa, Rep. Joe Courtney, Rep. Angie Craig, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, Rep. Jason Crow, Rep. Danny Davis, Rep. Madeleine Dean, Rep. Diana DeGette, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Rep. Suzan DelBene, Rep. Christopher Deluzio, Rep. Maxine Dexter, Rep. Debbie Dingell, Rep. Lloyd Doggett, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Sen. Richard Durbin, Rep. Sarah Elfreth, Rep. Veronica Escobar, Rep. Adriano Espaillat, Rep. Dwight Evans, Rep. Cleo Fields, Rep. Shomari Figures, Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, Rep. Bill Foster, Rep. Valerie Foushee, Rep. Lois Frankel, Rep. Laura Friedman, Rep. Maxwell Frost, Rep. Ruben Gallego, Rep. John Garamendi, Rep. Jesús García, Rep. Robert Garcia, Rep. Sylvia Garcia, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, Rep. Daniel Goldman, Rep. Jimmy Gomez, Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, Rep. Maggie Goodlander, Rep. Josh Gottheimer, Rep. Al Green, Sen. Maggie Hassan, Rep. Jahana Hayes, Sen. Martin Heinrich, Sen. John W. Hickenlooper, Rep. James Himes, Sen. Mazie Hirono, Rep. Steven Horsford, Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, Rep. Steny Hoyer, Rep. Val Hoyle, Rep. Jared Huffman, Rep. Glenn Ivey, Rep. Jonathan Jackson, Rep. Sara Jacobs, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, Rep. Henry Johnson, Rep. Julie Johnson, Sen. Timothy Kaine, Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove, Rep. Marcy Kaptur, Rep. William Keating, Sen. Mark Kelly, Rep. Robin Kelly, Rep. Timothy Kennedy, Rep. Ro Khanna, Rep. Andy Kim, Sen. Angus King, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Rep. Greg Landsman, Rep. John Larson, Rep. George Latimer, Rep. Summer Lee, Rep. Susie Lee, Rep. Mike Levin, Rep. Ted Lieu, Rep. Zoe Lofgren, Sen. Ben Ray Luján, Rep. Stephen Lynch, Rep. Seth Magaziner, Rep. John Mannion, Sen. Edward J. Markey, Rep. Doris Matsui, Rep. Lucy McBath, Rep. Sarah McBride, Rep. Jennifer McClellan, Rep. Betty McCollum, Rep. Morgan McGarvey, Rep. James McGovern, Rep. LaMonica McIver, Rep. Gregory Meeks, Sen. Robert Menendez, Rep. Grace Meng, Sen. Jeff Merkley, Rep. Kweisi Mfume, Rep. Dave Min, Rep. Gwen Moore, Rep. Joseph Morelle, Rep. Kelly Morrison, Rep. Jared Moskowitz, Rep. Seth Moulton, Rep. Frank Mrvan, Rep. Kevin Mullin, Rep. Richard Neal, Rep. Joe Neguse, Rep. Donald Norcross, Rep. Eleanor Norton, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Johnny Olszewski, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Sen. Alex Padilla, Rep. Jimmy Panetta, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Gary Peters, Rep. Scott Peters, Rep. Brittany Pettersen, Rep. Chellie Pingree, Rep. Mark Pocan, Rep. Nellie Pou, Rep. Ayanna Pressley, Rep. Mike Quigley, Rep. Delia Ramirez, Rep. Emily Randall, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Sen. Jack Reed, Rep. Luz Rivas, Rep. Kristen McDonald Rivet, Rep. Jacklyn Rosen, Rep. Deborah Ross, Rep. Raul Ruiz, Rep. Patrick Ryan, Rep. Andrea Salinas, Sen. Bernard Sanders, Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon, Rep. Janice Schakowsky, Sen. Brian Schatz, Rep. Adam B. Schiff, Rep. Bradley Schneider, Rep. Hillary Scholten, Rep. Kim Schrier, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Sen. Charles Schumer, Rep. David Scott, Rep. Terri Sewell, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, Rep. Brad Sherman, Rep. Mikie Sherrill, Rep. Lateefah Simon, Rep. Elissa Slotkin, Rep. Adam Smith, Sen. Tina Smith, Rep. Eric Sorensen, Rep. Darren Soto, Rep. Greg Stanton, Rep. Haley Stevens, Rep. Marilyn Strickland, Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, Rep. Thomas Suozzi, Rep. Eric Swalwell, Rep. Emilia Sykes, Rep. Linda Sánchez, Rep. Mark Takano, Rep. Shri Thanedar, Rep. Bennie Thompson, Rep. Mike Thompson, Rep. Dina Titus, Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Rep. Jill Tokuda, Rep. Paul Tonko, Rep. Norma Torres, Rep. Ritchie Torres, Rep. Lori Trahan, Rep. Derek Tran, Rep. Lauren Underwood, Rep. Juan Vargas, Rep. Marc Veasey, Rep. Nydia Velázquez, Rep. Eugene Vindman, Sen. Mark R. Warner, Sen. Raphael G. Warnock, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, Rep. Maxine Waters, Rep. Peter Welch, Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, Rep. George Whitesides, Rep. Nikema Williams, Rep. Frederica Wilson, and Sen. Ron Wyden.

The letter is endorsed by: A Better Balance, American Civil Liberties Union, the Human Rights Campaign, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, National Employment Law Project, National Partnership for Women & Families, and the National Women’s Law Center.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING:  

“Since its establishment 60 years ago as part of the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, the EEOC has protected the rights of workers to earn a living free from discrimination. President Trump’s illegal and unprecedented dismissal of Commissioners Charlotte Burrows and Jocelyn Samuels critically impairs the EEOC's ability to ensure that individuals aren't denied jobs and opportunities because of who they are.  We condemn the administration’s flagrant politicization of an independent, nonpartisan civil rights agency and join members of Congress calling for the reinstatement of the commissioners without delay,” said Mike Zamore, National Director of Policy and Government Affairs of the American Civil Liberties Union.

“People rely on the EEOC to be an independent, fair body that will protect their right to be free from discrimination in their workplace,” said Gaylynn Burroughs, Vice President for Education and Workplace Justice at the National Women’s Law Center. “President Trump’s removal of EEOC Commissioners Burrows and Samuels is just another extension of his authoritarian power grab that will ultimately harm workers. His actions are a clear abuse of power intended to bend the Commission to his will, but the Commission works for all working people, not for President Trump. The EEOC was born out of the civil rights movement to help ensure equal employment opportunity for all workers. We will continue to fight to preserve the integrity of the Commission, for equal opportunity, and for the right of all workers to be free from discrimination.”

“We condemn the administration’s unlawful attempt to fire sitting EEOC commissioners. This reckless decision is already having devastating consequences for workers waiting for the agency to take legal action against employers engaged in discrimination and severe ramifications for the agency’s ability to function effectively and enforce labor and civil rights protections,” said Jocelyn C. Frye, President of the National Partnership for Women & Families. “Workers who are depending on the EEOC to do its job should not have to endure discrimination because of political stunts intended to undermine civil rights enforcement. By making it virtually impossible for the Commission to take important actions, because it lacks a quorum, the administration is effectively circumventing robust enforcement of statutory anti-discrimination protections that workers depend on every day. President Trump must reinstate the commissioners he fired to rectify this situation. We commend Congressman Jerry Nadler and Senator Patty Murray, and all the members of Congress who join us in this fight, for standing up to safeguard the rights and the freedoms of all workers so that they are treated fairly in workplaces that are free of discrimination.”

“The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's role in ensuring equitable workplaces and enforcing our nation’s laws against discrimination is vital. It is an outrage that the Trump Administration has gutted the agency by illegally firing key EEOC Commissioners who have tirelessly championed robust enforcement of important workplace laws like the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Title VII of the Civil Right Act. This is an overstep of the President's authority that will hamstring the agency's ability to carry out its mission. We thank Congressman Nadler, Senator Murray, Ranking Member Scott, Congresswoman Stansbury, and Congresswoman Leger Fernández for their leadership in defending the EEOC," said Inimai Chettiar, President of A Better Balance. 

“President Trump’s removal of Commissioners Burrows and Samuels was an outrageous attack on civil rights and the rule of law – one of many actions taken by the president in pursuit of his goal to further entrench inequality and occupational segregation. The EEOC’s independence and bipartisan structure was established by Congress in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and is essential to its mission to promote equal opportunity in the workplace. This lawlessness and disregard for our Constitution cannot stand,” said Josh Boxerman, Government Affairs Manager, National Employment Law Project.

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