Legal Process Paper The federal agency that serves as the body to protect employees from employment discrimination based on race, sex, national origin, religion, age, or disability is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Discrimination is the process that treats an individual differently based on preconceived ideas (Duhaime, n.d.). An employee who thinks he has been the subject of discrimination has the right to file a complaint with the EEOC. In this paper, there will be an analysis of an employment discrimination complaint and civil litigation process from the initial EEOC filing and if necessary, through the state, and federal court systems. The paper will also include a discussion of other relevant aspects to address discrimination complaints and workplace disputes.
Overview of the EEOC Process John is an employee in a private sector organization, and he thinks he has been subject to discrimination. He wants to file a discrimination complaint. The first step in the process is the requirement to file a Charge of Discrimination. This is done by contacting any EEOC office (EEOC, 2009). The deadline for the employee to file the charge is 180 days after the occurrence of the discrimination. Although the deadline can be a total of 300 days, if the occurrence of the discrimination took place where state or local anti-discrimination laws exist (EEOC, 2009).
The state and local agencies responsible for enforcement of the anti-discrimination laws are the Fair Employment Practices Agencies (FEPAs). The EEOC and FEPA work together to ensure the individual filing the claim receives protection under both state and federal laws without the duplication of work. If the FEPA, files a claim that is also covered by federal law, FEPA will submit a copy of the file to the EEOC to protect the individual’s federal rights. Although the EEOC receives a copy of the file, the FEPA maintains handling of the claim. If the EEOC receives a complaint that falls under state and local law, FEPA will receive a copy of the claim; but the EEOC retains handling of the file (EEOC, 2009). After filing the charge of discrimination and completion of the EEOC questionnaire, the EEOC will notify the employer, 10 days after the employee files the charge. The employee and employer may be asked to try to resolve the issue through another method such as mediation. Mediation will allow each party in the dispute to discuss the issue with a neutral third party. This process is informal, confidential, and usually non-binding (U.S. Courts, 2006). If both parties agree to mediation, they have 60 days for in-house mediation and 45 days for external mediation to respond to the charge (Bennett-Alexander and Hartman, 2007). If the parties do not agree to mediation, or if the mediation process does not solve the issue, an EEOC investigator will receive the charge (EEOC, 2009). The EEOC conducts an investigation that begins at the state level. If the employee is a federal worker, the investigation of the claim conducted both on both the state and federal level EEOC, 2009). After the EEOC investigation, if no violations of the law have been found, the employee will receive a Notice of Right to Sue. This gives the employee the right to sue in a court. After the receipt of this letter, the employee has 90 days to file a lawsuit. If a violation of the law is found, the EEOC attempts a voluntary settlement between the employee and employer. If the parties cannot reach a settlement, the EEOC will refer the case to its staff lawyers to determine if it should file a lawsuit (EEOC, 2009). If the case is heard in court, and the employee does not agree with the outcome; he can file an appeal, if he has sufficient cause. The appeal can be heard by any level of the court system, which includes the United States Supreme Court (Bennett-Alexander and Hartman, 2007).
Other Laws Concerning Discrimination and Disputes in the Workplace
In addition to the EEOC, there are other laws that protect individuals from discrimination. In 1964, Congress passes Title VII of the Civil Right Act to protect minority groups who were subject to racial or gender discrimination. For the protection of individuals over the age of 40, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 prohibits the discrimination of employees based on age (EEOC, 2009). The Equal Pay Act of 1963 prohibits payment of different wages based on the sex of an employee. The American with Disabilities Act of 1990 provides individuals with disabilities from employers who will not provide proper accommodations (EEOC, 2009).
Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is a form of dispute resolution that individuals can use before pursuing legal action. Mediation is one form of ADR. Other methods include arbitration, negotiation, and conciliation. ADR resolution methods can be within the company such as counseling, which can be formal or informal; or outside the company such as an organization that specializes in ADR methods (Moreno, 2004). Many employers provide methods for resolving disputes before the filing of an EEOC complaint. Employee training on discrimination matters and how to handle these situations are the most common.
Discrimination in the workplace is unfortunately a common occurrence. If an employee thinks, he has been the subject of discrimination he has the right to file an EEOC complaint. The EEOC is the federal agency that protects individuals from discrimination. The EEOC process begins with the initial filing of the complaint and concludes with a decision made either through the court system or by dispute resolution methods. This paper was a discussion of the process and also other relevant aspects for addressing discrimination and workplace disputes.

References

Bennett-Alexander, D. & Hartman, L. (2007). Employment law for business. (5th ed.). McGraw-
Hill: Boston, MA. Retrieved November 23, 2009 from University of Phoenix, MGT/434 rEsource course materials.
Duhaime, L. (2009). Discrimination definition. Retrieved November 23, 2009 from http://duhaime.org/LegalDictionary/D/Discrimination.aspx
EEOC (2009). Filing a claim of discrimination. Retrieved November 22, 2009 from http://www.eeoc.gov/employees/charge.cfm
Moreno, E. (2004). A workplace dispute resolution system creates a winning team. Retrieved November 23, 2009 from http://www.mediate.com/articles/morenoE2.cfm
U. S. Courts (2006). In resolving disputes, mediation most favored ADR option in district courts. Retrieved November 22, 2009 from http://www.uscourts.gov/ttb/07-06/mediation/index.html