This data has helped fight workplace discrimination for 60 years. The Trump administration plans to delete it

Enforcing civil rights without these reports will be difficult for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, pushing US agency closer to Trump's agenda, experts warn

The US civil rights agency mandated to protect equal rights for workers is set to stop collecting data on the demographic makeup of companies - which for the past six decades has been used to enforce anti-discrimination laws.

The move marks a fundamental shift for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Without this data, it will be much harder for the agency to identify widespread cases of discrimination in hiring and promotions, experts and former employees of the commission say. And, they warn, it will bring the Trump administration one step closer to reshaping the commission from an independent watchdog into an arm of the executive branch narrowly focused on advancing the political grievances of Donald Trump's base.