Responding To an Employment Discrimination Complaint

Discrimination in the workplace is wrong, but in today's litigious society complaints are sometimes raised without any real foundation. In Texas, anyone can file an employment discrimination complaint through the Texas Workforce Commission's Civil Rights Division.

The Civil Rights Division works with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in investigating discrimination incidents and determining their validity. Thanks to the groups' work sharing agreement, submitting an employment discrimination complaint with Texas' Civil Rights Division automatically submits a duplicate complaint to the EEOC.

As you can imagine, the process can be time consuming for business owners who must respond to complaints to protect their good names.

Business owners should seek legal advice before responding to a complaint. An experienced business law attorney will check to see if a few basic requirements are part of the complaint:

• The physical place of employment must be in the state of Texas.
• The business must employ 15 or more employees.
• The alleged discrimination must have occurred within 180 days before the complaint was submitted.
• The alleged discrimination must have been related to a protected status, such as race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age or disability.
• The complaint must allege harm to the complainant's employment, such as demotion, denial of promotion, or termination.

If you've been notified that an employee or former employee has made a discrimination claim, consult with an experienced Bryan-College Station, Texas business law attorney who can provide assistance and answer your questions. Call the Peterson Law Group to make an appointment at 979-703-7014 or 936-337-4681 or fill out our online contact form.