Establishing jurisdiction.
Employment Status
The EEOC enforces laws that protect employees, former employees, and job applicants. Independent contractors generally aren’t covered — though if you’ve been misclassified, you may still qualify. Active-duty military members employed by the military follow a separate process: the Military Equal Opportunity (MEO) system.
Type of Employer
Different employer categories follow different procedural rules. Federal employees use a separate EEOC process. Most state and local government employees are covered directly by Title VII. The Government Employee Rights Act (GERA) is a narrow backstop covering certain high-level officials — elected officials, their personal staff, and policymaking appointees — who are excluded from Title VII’s “employee” definition.
Employee Count
Most EEOC laws have minimum thresholds:
- Title VII, ADA, GINA, PWFA: 15+ employees
- ADEA (age): 20+ employees
- EPA (equal pay): all employers
If your employer falls below these thresholds, state law may still cover you.
Identifying applicable laws.
Basis of Discrimination
Each protected class points to a specific federal statute:
- Race, color, religion, sex, national origin → Title VII
- Age (40+) → ADEA
- Disability → ADA
- Genetic information → GINA
- Pregnancy → Title VII (PDA) or PWFA
Adverse Employment Action
The EEOC needs both a protected basis and an adverse action — a change to a term or condition of your employment. Common examples include termination, demotion, pay disparity, denial of accommodation, and harassment. The harm doesn’t have to be major: under recent Supreme Court precedent, even modest changes to your terms or conditions of work can support a discrimination claim.
Retaliation
Retaliation is its own protected category. If you complained about discrimination, participated in an investigation, or supported someone else’s complaint, the law protects you from punishment for those actions. The retaliation standard is broader than the discrimination standard — any action that might dissuade a reasonable worker from making a complaint can qualify.
Prior Filings
If you’ve already filed a charge with the EEOC, a state agency, or in court for the same incident, your options may be limited. Filing simultaneously in multiple forums can also affect your timing and remedies. If you’ve filed before, mention it — the answer may change which procedural path is open to you.
Why timing is everything.
The Federal Filing Window
The EEOC has strict deadlines. The default federal deadline is 180 days from the discriminatory act. The deadline extends to 300 days if your state or local jurisdiction has a Fair Employment Practices Agency certified by the EEOC for deferral under 29 C.F.R. § 1601.80. Most states have a certified agency covering the entire state. Four do not: Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi are non-deferral states where the 180-day deadline applies. Kentucky and Virginia have no state-level certified agency but have certified local agencies in specific cities and counties — your deadline depends on where the discrimination occurred. Miss this window and you may lose your federal claim entirely.
When the Clock Starts
The clock generally starts on the date of the specific act you’re challenging. For a termination, that’s your last day. For a denial of promotion, the date you learned the position went to someone else. For pay discrimination, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act treats each discriminatory paycheck as a fresh violation — the clock resets with each paycheck you receive.
Continuing Violations
For ongoing harassment that’s part of a single hostile work environment, the deadline runs from the most recent incident, not the first. So even if some of the harassment occurred more than 180 or 300 days ago, you may still file as long as at least one incident falls within the filing window.
Don’t Wait — Even If You Have Time
Filing deadlines are floors, not goals. Evidence disappears. Witnesses leave. Documents get lost. The earlier you file, the stronger your case. If you’re close to the deadline, file something — you can amend later.
Your information, your privacy.
Why We Ask
The EEOC needs to identify you, your employer, and a way to reach you to take action on a charge. Without these basics, no investigation can begin. We collect your name and email so we can send you your eligibility results and follow-up resources tailored to your situation.
How We Use It
The information you submit through this calculator stays with Discrimination Navigator. We don’t share, sell, or rent your contact information.
What We Don’t Ask
We don’t ask for your Social Security number, salary details, or your employer’s confidential information through this calculator. If you decide to file an EEOC charge later, those details come into play — but they go to the EEOC directly, not to us.
This Is Educational, Not Legal Advice
Discrimination Navigator is an educational platform. Using this calculator does not create an attorney-client relationship, and the results are not legal advice. If you need advice tailored to your specific situation, consult a licensed employment attorney in your jurisdiction.