How do I file an employment discrimination claim with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)?

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 03:21:15 GMT

If you believe that you have been discriminated against in terms of employment, the first place that you should turn to is the EEOC. Most discrimination laws enforced by the EEOC require that you file a claim, or charge, with the EEOC before filing a lawsuit for discrimination against an employer. Filing an EEOC claim ensures that you will be able to file a discrimination lawsuit in the future, if you decide to do so. Furthermore, filing an EEOC charge is a relatively easy method of enforcing your right to be free from employment discrimination, since you can file an EEOC claim with your local office by completing some simple paperwork.

First, you should contact your local EEOC office for the paperwork and/or questionnaire necessary to filing a charge. You can generally submit these forms in person at the local office, by mail, or online through the EEOC website found at www.eeoc.gov. Plus, if you need help filling out the paperwork, or if you need some accommodation in order to allow you to do so, your local office should be able to assist you in making sure that you have filled it out correctly and completely. The only exception is if you are a federal employee who has experienced employment discrimination; in that case, you have to go through a completely separate process for filing an EEOC charge.

At a minimum, your paperwork must contain the following:

· Your name, address, and telephone number

· The name, address, and telephone number of the employer that you are complaining about

· A short description of the event that you believe was discriminatory

· The date that the discriminatory event happened

It is also important to remember that in most cases, you must file a charge with the EEOC within 180 days of the discriminatory event with your employer. If state or local discrimination laws also apply to your charge, however, the filing deadline is extended to 300 days, with a few exceptions, such as claims under the Equal Pay Act. Despite these filing timelines, however, it is always best to contact the EEOC as soon as possible after the event that you believe was discriminatory occurred.

Furthermore, if your charge is also covered by state or local law, you can either file with your local or state agency that deals with discrimination issues, which is typically called a “Fair Employment Practices Agency”, or the EEOC. The two agencies will cooperate in order to ensure that you have filed charges under both local/state and federal law; usually, whichever agency you filed the charge with will continue to handle the charge.

Finally, if you work for a U.S. company outside the U.S., you should file your EEOC charge with the district office closest to your employer’s headquarters, or, if you don’t know where to file it, you can simply file the charge with any EEOC office. Despite their presence outside of the U.S., these employers are generally subject to discrimination laws, with a few exceptions.

As you can see, filing an EEOC charge is a relatively simple, and often necessary step to combating discrimination that you have may have experienced in the workplace. The EEOC exists solely to make sure that your employer does not discriminate against you; therefore, you should use the services that the EEOC has to offer if you have been discriminated against by your employer.

The "For Good Cause" Defense to Employment Discrimination Claims

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 18:03:29 GMT

Employers may not fire employees for discriminatory reasons such as their age, sex, disability, religion, race, or national origin. However, sometimes employers are put in the difficult position of having a valid legal reason for terminating an employee even though the employee may claim that he or she was fired for discriminatory reasons.

The “For Good Cause” Defense to Employment Discrimination

If an employee alleges that he or she was fired for a discriminatory reason then the employer may present a defense to that claim. An employer is permitted to terminate an employee at will, also known as an employee without a written employment contract, for good cause or for a legitimate nondiscriminatory reason at any time. For example, an employer can terminate employees for misconduct or because business has slowed down and the employer no longer needs as many employees as it once did.

While an employer has the right to terminate employees for good cause or for a legitimate nondiscriminatory reason, the employer must make its decision solely for nondiscriminatory reasons. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 makes it an unlawful employment practice to terminate an employee if it can be shown that there was a discriminatory motive involved in the employer’s decision to terminate an employee. An employer must be able to prove that it would have made the same decision to terminate the employee absent a discriminatory motive. If an employer is successful in proving this element of his defense then the employee will not be entitled to damages.

Best Practices Make “For Good Cause” Defenses Successful

It is important for an employer to remember that it must have terminated an employee absent a discriminatory motive and it must be able to prove the absence of a discriminatory motive in court. While proving the absence of discrimination is not always easy, there are some important pieces of evidence that an employer can provide. For example, an employer should keep detailed employee record files that include all formal and informal employee reviews, warnings about behavior or work quality that were provided to the employee and, guidance or training that was provided to the employee. The employer may present evidence that all employees who act as the employee acted are fired, regardless of employees’ sex, age, disability, religion, race or other protected status. Similarly, if an employer is making layoffs for economic reasons then the employer should follow a logical method for making those layoffs. For example, the common “last hired, first fired” rule.

Employment Lawyers are Important in Employment Defense Cases

For the reasons discussed above, record keeping is an important part of employment discrimination cases. An employment law attorney can help an employer learn how to keep employee records in a way that accurately documents the employee’s work history and that can be used as reliable evidence if a future employment discrimination lawsuit should arise. Once an employment discrimination lawsuit is filed against an employer, an employment discrimination lawyer can help argue the “for good cause” defense to the court. Therefore, it is important for employers to have experienced employment lawyers who can protect their interests.

What can I do if I am being discriminated against based on my sexual orientation?

Tue, 10 Feb 2009 01:05:42 GMT

Despite fairly broad federal civil rights laws that have been in place for years, there is no federal law that covers discrimination against people based on their sexual orientation. While some state and local laws do cover discrimination based on sexual orientation, these laws certainly do not exist nationwide. Therefore, if you are being discriminated against on the basis of your sexual orientation, you should seek an attorney that can more specifically advise you as to what legal protections are available to you in your area of the country.

According to the Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, a national resource and action center for issues related to sexual orientation and identity, the most commonly complained-of type of discrimination based on sexual orientation occurs in the private sector workplace. There may be coverage for selected types of discrimination under broader federal laws; for instance, some courts have applied sex discrimination laws to transgendered persons who have encountered discrimination in the workplace. Another example is persons who are HIV positive; the Americans with Disabilities Act prohibits employers from discriminating against workers based on their HIV status. Plus, if you are an employee of the federal government, there is an executive order that prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation. Despite these specific situations where legal recourse may be available, discrimination against persons based on sexual orientation is likely to go unchecked in the absence of an applicable state or local law, which exists in less than half of the states.

There are some states and localities that have laws specifically outlawing discrimination in the private sector workplace based on sexual orientation. Still other states have laws that prohibit such discrimination in the public sector workplace only. Plus, there is a handful of states, counties, and/or cities that ban discrimination based on gender identity.

Even if you live in an area of the country where there are no state or local laws prohibiting discrimination based on sexual orientation, there are many legal theories under which you might have some recourse. After all, discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation is a relatively new and constantly evolving area of the law, so you may be able to fight back against an employer that discriminates against you on this basis. And, for the very same reason, if you are an employer, you would be well-advised to avoid basing any employment decision on an employee’s sexual orientation.

If you feel that your employer has discriminated against you based on your sexual orientation, you should first consult an attorney and/or state or local civil rights agency in order to determine if you have any recourse. If you are unable to find information in your area, you can also contact the national office of Lambda Legal at (212) 809-8585, or online at www.lambdalegal.com. Lambda Legal is actively involved in education and litigation related to discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and may be able to help you with your problem, or at least point you to available resources.