712 JOURNAL OF LAW AND POLICY
Procedures” states, “1. Private right of action. This Chapter
shall be enforced solely by a private right of action.”^218 Drafters,
however, could make the following revision:
Section 8—Procedures- Private right of action and alternative dispute
resolution. This Chapter may be enforced by a private
right of action. Where appropriate and to the extent
authorized by law, the use of alternative means of dispute
resolution, including settlement negotiations, mediation,
and arbitration, is encouraged to resolve disputes arising
under this Chapter.
It is important to recognize, however, that as state law, the
Healthy Workplace Bill would not be enforced by the EEOC but
rather by state fair employment agencies.^219 Currently, those
agencies only have jurisdiction over discrimination claims,^220 and
like the EEOC, they are overloaded and suffer substantial delays
in investigating claims.^221 In fact, a claim investigated by the
EEOC takes on average up to two years, whereas an
investigation into a claim filed at some state anti-discrimination
agencies may take up to twenty-two months to commence, and
authorized by law, the use of alternative means of dispute resolution,
including settlement negotiations, conciliation, facilitation, mediation,
factfinding, minitrials, and arbitration, is encouraged to resolve disputes
arising under the Acts of provisions of Federal law amended by this title.”
Id. (emphasis added).
(^217) See Yamada, Crafting a Legislative Response, supra note 27, at 517–
21.
(^218) Id. at 521.
(^219) Many state EEO enforcement agencies have implemented ADR
programs to resolve statutory-based labor and employment disputes. Fox &
Stallworth, supra note 214, at 383.
(^220) Most states have a Civil Rights Commission or Department of Labor
to enforce state employment discrimination laws. For more information, see
State Laws on Employment-Related Discrimination, NAT’L CONFERENCE OF
STATE LEGISLATURES (Oct. 2010), http://www.ncsl.org/documents/employ/
DiscriminationChart-III.pdf.
(^221) See Lamont Stallworth & Linda Stroh, Who Is Seeking to Use ADR?
Why Do They Choose to Do So?, 51 DISP. RESOL. J. 30, 30 (1996). State
anti-discrimination agencies struggle to investigate and resolve claims in a
timely manner due to heavy caseloads, budget cuts, and staff reduction. Id.