Employment Discrimination and the EEOC

Federal Employment Discrimination Attorneys

Pursuant to the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-16, persons have the right to equal federal employment opportunities regardless of their race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, or prior EEO activity. This includes protection against sexual and other forms of harassment.

If you are a federal employee facing or accused of unlawful employment discrimination, contact Mahoney & Jeffrey at 202.312.7100 . Our attorneys can represent you throughout the EEOC process.

Filing a Discrimination Claim

The federal government’s EEO process differs sharply from the private sector's. Once a federal employee knows or should know that they have been discriminated against, they only have 45 calendar days to contact a designated EEO counselor at their agency to file an informal complaint of discrimination. EEO counseling is required to take 30 days unless the employee agrees to an extension of time or agrees to submit their complaint to an agency alternative dispute resolution process, which will extend the EEO counseling process for an additional 60 days. If the complaint isn’t resolved within that time, then the employee will be given written notice of the right to file a formal written EEO complaint within 15 calendar days of receiving that notice.

Once a formal EEO complaint is filed, the employee’s agency will accept or dismiss the complaint. If accepted, the agency will conduct an investigation into the complaint, which is required to last at least 180 calendar days from the date on which the formal complaint was filed. The agency investigation will consist of either a fact-finding conference or witness interviews. At the end of the 180-day period, the agency will issue a report of investigation that includes all the evidence gathered by the EEO investigator. After that, an employee has several options. They can:

• request an EEOC hearing
• have the employing agency issue a written final decision; and/or
• opt out of the administrative process and file a civil action in federal district court

The employee may appeal the final agency decision (issued either after or instead of the EEOC hearing) to the EEOC headquarters in Washington, D.C. and may file their civil action in federal court at any time after the formal complaint has been pending for more than 180 days (even after the EEOC’s final appellate decision is issued).

Mahoney & Jeffrey represents clients at every stage of the federal government’s EEO process, from initial EEO counselor contact all the way through appeals in federal court. Call 202.312.7100 today for a case evaluation.

Contact Mahoney & Jeffrey at 202-312-7100 to speak to a federal employment discrimination attorney today.

Mahoney & Jeffrey serves clients wherever the federal government has employees, including civilian, military and diplomatic installations across the United States and worldwide in places such as North America, Asia, South and Central America, Africa, Japan, Germany, Italy, France and the entire European Union.