OFCCP Director Catherine Eschbach Leaving for EEOC Attorney Role



U.S. DOL Policy Advisor, Ashley Romanias, To Be New OFCCP Director

Silberman Law has learned that OFCCP Director Catherine Eschbach – appointed in March, 2025 – will depart OFCCP and become the Principal Deputy General Counsel at EEOC.


Ashley Romanias, currently a DOL Senior Policy Advisor, will be the new OFCCP Director.


It is likely Ms. Eschbach will take lessons learned regarding OFCCP investigation processes and procedures to her new attorney’s role at EEOC.


Since early in President Trump’s second term, EEOC has had two Commissioners, thus lacking a “quorum” (minimum of three out of five Commissioners), generally necessary for EEOC to implement new policies and make significant changes to the Commission’s enforcement priorities.


Among those enforcement priorities, EEOC has indicated it will investigate employers’ DEI (under whatever name) programs for potential violations of federal anti-discrimination laws.


On May 6, 2025, President Trump nominated Brittany Panuccio to fill a vacancy as Commissioner. If confirmed by the Senate, which appears likely, this will restore the Commission's quorum.


New OFCCP Director, Ashley Romanias, joined DOL in July 2025. Prior to that, she worked as the Assistant Director, Executive Compensation, at the Federal Housing Finance Agency for nearly four years, as well as at several prominent law firms.


We will provide updates as we learn more.


If you have any questions, simply reply to this Alert or reach out to the Silberman Law attorney with whom you work.

September 15, 2026
Discontinue Using U.S. DOL Form CC-305 Inviting Applicants & Employees to Self-Identify Disability Status by September 21, 2026.
September 3, 2026
The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) $3.2 million settlement with OpenAI highlights growing exposure for employers when a ‘green card’ recruitment process differs from ordinary recruitment practices. HR, talent acquisition, and global mobility teams should ensure that green card sponsored recruitment
September 2, 2026
Join Us for This Discussion About Recent and Impending EEO Reporting Changes and the Options, Risks and Strategies for Employers to Consider Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 12:30pm ET Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor issued final regulations that result in significant changes to the EEO and affirmative action
September 15, 2026
Discontinue Using U.S. DOL Form CC-305 Inviting Applicants & Employees to Self-Identify Disability Status by September 21, 2026.
September 3, 2026
The U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) $3.2 million settlement with OpenAI highlights growing exposure for employers when a ‘green card’ recruitment process differs from ordinary recruitment practices. HR, talent acquisition, and global mobility teams should ensure that green card sponsored recruitment
September 2, 2026
Join Us for This Discussion About Recent and Impending EEO Reporting Changes and the Options, Risks and Strategies for Employers to Consider Wednesday, September 9, 2026 at 12:30pm ET Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor issued final regulations that result in significant changes to the EEO and affirmative action
August 26, 2026
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has proposed a new $103,265 fee for every H-1B application subject to the annual “cap” lottery. If finalized, the fee would be payable when the petition is filed and would apply
August 25, 2026
Note: This Alert has been updated to reflect different effective dates for two separate regulations we describe below. The United States Department of Labor (DOL) published on August 21, 2026, three final rules addressing federal contractor equal employment opportunity obligations.
August 21, 2026
The United States Department of Labor (DOL) will publish today, Friday, August 21, 2026, three final rules addressing federal contractor equal employment opportunity obligations. The new regulations become effective October 26, 2026.
August 12, 2026
In late May 2026, Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont signed the Connecticut Artificial Intelligence Responsibility & Transparency Act (the "Act"). The Act is comprehensive and regulates many different areas beyond employment, such as consumer and companion chatbots, frontier-model developers, generative-AI content
August 6, 2026
What Does This Mean for Colorado Employers? This new law passed in Colorado imposes specific restrictions on how employers handle government-issued identification documents for their Colorado employees. The law prohibits employers from demanding, confiscating, or improperly retaining certain identification documents,
July 15, 2026
The U.S. Supreme Court, in its recent decision in Trump v. Barbara, concluded that the 14th Amendment guarantees citizenship to all children born in the United States, regardless of their parents’ immigration status.
July 7, 2026
In 1979, the EEOC published “Affirmative Action Appropriate Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act Of 1964”. 29 C.F.R Part 1608 (“the Guidance”) which provided guidance to employers electing to implement voluntary affirmative action programs.