Employment Law

Legal Process Paper

John is an employee in a private sector organization and wants to file a discrimination complaint against his employer. Although the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces Federal Laws that protect employees and applicants from employment discrimination in the work place, which includes bias in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, compensation, retaliation, and various types of harassment, only some types of discrimination are currently punishable through the U. S. legal system. Though anyone can file a discrimination complaint with the EEOC, John must show that he has been discriminated against because of his race, religion, national origin, disability, or age in order to receive a right-to-sue letter.

Filing a Charge of Discrimination

As an employee in the private sector, if John isn’t sure whether or not his employer is covered, he should contact one of the EEOC field offices as soon as possible and they can make that decision. Even if John’s employer is not covered by the laws that the EEOC enforces, his employer may still be covered by a state or local agency that enforces that law. The EEOC can refer John to the appropriate state or local agency that enforces anti-discrimination laws. “Through its administrative enforcement process, the Commission receives, investigates, and resolves charges of employment discrimination filed against private sector employers, employment agencies, labor unions, and state and local governments, including charges of systemic discrimination” (www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/enforcement_litigation.cfm).

Time Limits For Filing a Charge

John should keep in mind that timeliness is filing a charge is a crucial factor because anti-discrimination laws give employees a limited amount of time to file a charge. In general, charges need to be within 180 calendar days after the day the discrimination occurred. In situations when a state or local agency enforces a law that prohibits employment...