1. What Is A Charge Of Discrimination?
A charge (or claim or complaint) of discrimination is a signed statement that an employer, union, or employment agency has discriminated against you. It asks a federal or state governmental agency to investigate the discrimination.
2. Who Should File A Charge of Discrimination?
If you are an employee or a job applicant, and you believe you have been discriminated against at work, you can file a charge of discrimination. If, however, you are an “independent contractor,” you may not be able to file a charge of discrimination. See Fact Sheet: “Misclassification of Employees as Independent Contractors”.
3. Where Should I File a Charge of Discrimination?
Where to file a charge of discrimination depends on which law has been violated. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is the federal agency that enforces federal civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The California Civil Rights Department (CRD) is California’s state agency that enforces state civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The CRD also investigates housing discrimination, discrimination by businesses, hate violence, and human trafficking.
You can generally file with either agency, but sometimes you may only be able to file with the CRD. For instance, at the CRD, you can file a harassment complaint against the employer and the individual harasser or just against the individual harasser. At the EEOC, you can only file a complaint against the employer. Another example of when you may only be able to file with the CRD is if the time to file with the EEOC has already passed because the agencies have different deadlines. See below on “What Is The Time Period to File a Charge of Discrimination?” Finally, if your employer only has less than 15 employees, you should file with the CRD because the EEOC only accepts complaints against employers with 15 or more employees.
If you file with one agency, you may request that the agency files with the other. The two agencies have a work-sharing agreement, so whichever agency first receives your complaint should investigate.
4. What Types of Discrimination Does the EEOC Investigate?
The EEOC investigates discrimination on the basis of:
- Age (40 and up)
- Disability (including physical and mental disabilities)
- Sex
- Pregnancy
- Equal Pay
- Sexual Orientation
- Gender Identity
- Harassment (including sexual harassment)
- National Origin (including immigration status)
- Race or Color
- Religion
- Retaliation
- Genetic Information
5. What Types of Discrimination Does the CRD Investigate?
The CRD investigates discrimination on the basis of:
- Age (40 and up)
- Disability (including physical and mental disabilities)
- Sex or Gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions)
- Sexual Orientation
- Gender Identity or Expression
- Harassment (including sexual harassment)
- National Origin (including immigration status) or Ancestry
- Race or Color (including hairstyles associated with race)
- Religion or Creed
- Retaliation
- Marital Status
- Medical Condition
- Genetic Information
- Military/Veteran Status
6. Why Should I File A Charge of Discrimination?
In general, you will need to file a charge of discrimination with the EEOC or the CRD before you can file a lawsuit in court. The exception is if your lawsuit is for equal pay discrimination under federal law.
7. I Work For A Small Employer. Can I Still File A Charge of Discrimination?
It depends on how small your employer is. In general, if you are filing a charge of discrimination with the EEOC, your employer must have at least 15 employees There are a couple of exceptions. For age discrimination cases, the employer must have at least 20 employees. For cases against a federal government employer, there is no minimum number of employees.
If you file a charge of discrimination with the CRD, your employer must have at least five employees. If you are filing a charge of harassment with the CRD, your employer needs to have only one employee.
8. What Is The Time Period to File a Charge of Discrimination?
The time period to file a charge in California is different depending on if you file with the EEOC or the CRD. For the EEOC, you must file your charge within 300 days of the last act of discrimination. For the CRD, you must file your charge within 3 years of the last act of discrimination.
You must file your charge within the time period or you will lose your right to sue the employer in court.
9. How Do I File A Charge of Discrimination?
First, assess whether you are still within the time limits for filing a charge. If you are still within the time limit, you will first be asked to complete a questionnaire (EEOC) or an intake form (CRD). Once that is completed, you will be scheduled for an interview.
At the interview, someone from the agency will ask you questions and then write your charge. Remember to bring any information that will help the agency understand your case. It is important to tell the agency about all types of discrimination you believe occurred or you may have problems with your lawsuit later on. For example, if you believe your employer discriminated against you because of your gender and age, you should tell the agency both of those things.
10. What Happens After I File A Charge of Discrimination?
Investigation
After the EEOC and/or CRD receives your charge of discrimination, it is required to provide a copy to your employer. The EEOC or CRD will then investigate your charge and will request your employer to respond.
Mediation
Both the EEOC and CRD have voluntary mediation programs to try and settle your charge of discrimination. Mediation is where an independent party tries to help you and your employer settle your dispute. Mediation is only scheduled if both you and your employer agree to participate. Neither you nor your employer has to pay for mediation. If you do not settle your charge at mediation, your charge will still be investigated by the EEOC or CRD.
The Determination
The EEOC or CRD will decide if it believes discrimination occurred. At that point, the EEOC or CRD can represent you in a lawsuit or, more commonly, you will receive a Right to Sue Letter. This letter concludes the agency’s investigation and allows you to file a lawsuit in court.
11. What Happens If I Want to File a Lawsuit?
You must have a Right to Sue letter before you can file a lawsuit against your employer in court.
In general, once the CRD issues a Right to Sue Letter, you have one year to file a lawsuit. Once the EEOC issues a Right to Sue letter, you have 90 days to file a lawsuit. It is important not to let these time periods pass or you may forever lose your right to file a lawsuit.
12. What if I Want More Information About the EEOC or CRD?
For more information about the EEOC, you can visit www.eeoc.gov or call (800) 669-4000. For more information about the CRD, you can visit https://calcivilrights.ca.gov/, call (800) 884-1684 or email contact.center@calcivilrights.ca.gov. Both the EEOC and CRD websites also contain information about statewide offices that you can visit to ask questions or to submit your intake form or questionnaire.