How to Contact the EEOC
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces federal laws against employee discrimination. If you think your employer might have violated your rights by discriminating against you, you can file a complaint with the EEOC and trigger an investigation. Because retaliation is often a concern in discrimination issues, the EEOC accepts complaints by a third party on your behalf. The commission will also provide interpreters or other accommodations as needed.
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Instructions
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Start the informal process. Before filing a formal EEOC complaint, an attempt to resolve the issue must be on the record. Begin this process by contacting the Office for Civil Rights, Enforcement, and Environmental Justice (OCREEJ) within 45 days of the discriminatory act. Its phone number is (202) 663-4900. If the OCREEJ cannot help you resolve the issue, you have 15 days from its final report to file a formal complaint.
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Find your field office. Your formal complaint should be filed at the nearest EEOC regional field office. See Resources below for more information on finding local, field, area and regional offices near you.
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File a complaint. Though your complaint will eventually have to be written, it is possible to begin the process by telephone. The call, however, must come within 180 days of the discriminatory act unless state or federal law extends the cutoff based on your employer or the type of discrimination. You will be asked your name, the name of the person on whose behalf you're calling (if not yourself), your contact information, the name and contact information of your employer and an explanation of the violation, including the date it occurred.
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Tips & Warnings
In 2009, President Obama extended the deadline for reporting discriminatory pay to women in a law called the Lilly Ledbetter Act. Under the new law, the 180-day deadline renews with each new discriminatory paycheck.
