The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has withdrawn its subpoena requiring the University of Pennsylvania to disclose the names and contact information of its Jewish faculty and staff. This decision concludes a legal dispute while the EEOC's investigation into potential religious discrimination against Jewish employees remains ongoing.
On Thursday, the EEOC informed the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals of its decision to withdraw the subpoena, which had been issued last year. In return, the University of Pennsylvania agreed to dismiss its appeal against a lower court ruling that mandated compliance with the subpoena.
The EEOC did not provide a reason for this reversal. However, the withdrawal does not terminate the investigation into allegations of discrimination or a hostile work environment for Jewish employees at the university. The agency may still take enforcement action if it finds violations of federal law.
The University of Pennsylvania expressed approval of the decision, noting that no personal information sought by the subpoena had been disclosed during the legal proceedings. The university stated, "The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has withdrawn its subpoena that demanded the disclosure of personal contact information and lists of Penn’s Jewish employees."
The dispute originated from an EEOC investigation following complaints that Jewish employees experienced discrimination after the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel and subsequent campus protests. Federal investigators argued that the subpoena was necessary to gather information to interview potential victims and assess the university's response to antisemitism complaints.
Penn indicated that it had already provided nearly 900 pages of documents and offered to inform employees about the investigation, but declined to release personal identifying information due to privacy concerns. The university maintained that the subpoena infringed on employees' constitutional rights by requiring the disclosure of religious affiliations.
A federal judge in Philadelphia had ruled in March that the subpoena was enforceable, stating that the requested information was pertinent to the EEOC's investigation, although he later paused the order pending Penn's appeal. The recent agreement concludes the litigation but leaves the underlying investigation unresolved.