Preventing Workplace Harassment, Discrimination, and Retaliation

E XHAUSTION OF EEOC AND DFEH A DMINISTRATIVE R EMEDIES AND A PPLICABLE S TATUTE OF L IMITATIONS

Section 15

A. EEOC A DMINISTRATIVE R EMEDIES In California, to seek damages solely under Title VII, the employee must generally file a charge of discrimination with the EEOC within 180 days of the unlawful conduct. If the employee seeks damages under both Title VII and the FEHA, then the employee must file the charges of discrimination within 300 days of the unlawful conduct. The EEOC must notify the employer of the charge within 10 days of receiving it and then promptly investigate it. If an employee fails to file charges with the EEOC alleging a violation of Title VII and then subsequently files a lawsuit against an employer, the employee’s claims may still proceed if the employer fails to assert as a defense at the beginning of the lawsuit that the employee failed to exhaust their administrative remedies with the EEOC. 222

Case Studies on Statute of Limitations

National R.R. Passenger Corp. v. Morgan 223 Abner Morgan, an African-American, sued his former employer National Railroad Passenger Corporation (Amtrak) under Title VII, alleging that he had been subjected to discrete discriminatory and retaliatory acts and had experienced a racially hostile work environment throughout his employment. Specifically, Morgan alleged that when he worked for Amtrak, he was “consistently harassed and disciplined more harshly than other employees on account of his race.” The Supreme Court considered whether, and under what circumstances, a Title VII plaintiff may file suit on events that fall outside the statutory time period for filing a charge with the EEOC. The Supreme Court held that the statute precludes recovery for discrete acts of discrimination or retaliation that occur outside the statutory time period. But the Court further held that consideration of the entire scope of a hostile work environment claim, including behavior alleged outside the statutory time period, is permissible for the purposes of assessing liability, so long as any act contributing to that hostile environment takes place within the statutory time period. A court may still, however, apply other equitable doctrines that may toll or limit the time period. Fort Bend County, TX v. Davis 224 Lois Davis filed an EEOC complaint against her employer, Fort Bend County. She alleged sexual harassment and retaliation for reporting harassment. While the EEOC complaint was still pending, the County fired Davis because she went to church on a Sunday instead of coming to work as requested. Davis attempted to amend her EEOC complaint by handwriting “religion” on an EEOC intake form; however, she never amended the formal charge document. Upon receiving her right-to-sue notice, Davis sued the County in federal court for religious discrimination and retaliation for reporting sexual harassment. After

Preventing Workplace Harassment, Discrimination, and Retaliation ©2019 (s) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 56