Find Your North Carolina Employment Lawyer
Our North Carolina employment lawyers are part of a national network of employment lawyers across the country, who are experienced in every facet of North Carolina employment law. From discrimination and harassment cases, to wrongful termination complaints, to severance disputes, our lawyers are well-versed on current NC statutes and are committed to serving our clients to ensure their continued right to work.
If you feel you have been fired or demoted due to race, gender, age, sexual orientation, religion, or other protected characteristic, we can help. If you aren’t sure if you have been offered a fair contract or severance agreement, contact us for review. If you feel unsafe or threatened in the workplace, let us help you move forward to a less hostile work environment.
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North Carolina’s EEPA
In North Carolina, the right to work is protected under anti-discrimination laws put forth in the Equal Employment Practices Act, known as the EEPA. The EEPA prohibits employment discrimination based on a person’s religion, race, color, national origin, age, sex, or handicap. Additionally, the EEPA added certain genetic traits to its protections, safeguarding those with sickle cell and Hemoglobin C traits from being discriminated against.
While the Human Relations Commission enforces the EEPA, all charges and claims in North Carolina must be filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or EEOC. All claims and cases are decided in North Carolina by a judge, not a jury.
Discrimination
North Carolina protects all prospective employees by specifying certain classes of individuals who are under state protection against discrimination. This means that no person may be denied an interview, a job, a promotion, a pay raise, benefits, or any other work-related matter based solely on their identity in one of these protected classes.
| Protected Classes in North Carolina |
|---|
ReligionNo employer may deny a job to a prospective employee because of his or her religion. Employers are not permitted to ask employees about their religious beliefs or practices during any part of the interview process. |
Race/ColorAn employee’s race or color may not be the sole basis for any negative employment action. No employee may be denied work, shifts, hours, or equal pay because of their race or skin color. |
National OriginA person’s nation of origin, ancestry or nationality may not be used as a reason to refuse work, deny promotion or fire from the job. Discrimination based on national origin is prohibited in the EEPA and may result in penalties toward the employer and compensation for the individual. |
AgeA person’s age may not be used to make decisions about hiring, firing, pay scale or promotion for employment. An individual’s work experience may be used to consider skill and other job-related positives, but numeric age may not be part of the consideration. |
SexAn employer may not discriminate in any job-related decisions based upon an employee’s gender. Men and women are protected equally in all hiring, firing, and pay scale decisions, regardless of their sex. |
HandicapNo employer may deny a job, promotion or earned pay increase due to an employee’s disability or handicap. Any “qualified person with a disability” is protected by the EEPA and must be treated fairly in all employment decisions. A “qualified person with a disability” is defined as on who can satisfactorily perform the duties of the job, with or without reasonable accommodation. |
Genetic TraitsTwo genetic traits are protected against discrimination by the EEPA. Employees who show markers for sickle cell traits or Hemoglobin C traits may not be discriminated against in any employment action based on these genetic traits. |
Sexual Harassment
While North Carolina does not have any specific state laws against sexual harassment in the workplace for private sector employees, all workers remain protected against sexual harassment by federal statutes. Title VII of the Civil Rights Acts protects any employee who works for a company of at least 15 employees against any form of sexual harassment in the workplace.
While these protections were initially to ensure fair hiring and pay practices, the same anti-discrimination laws offer protection against harassment, too. Unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or any verbal or physical sexual behaviors are considered harassment. Sexual harassment does not only refer to unwanted sexual advances, but also includes offensive remarks about a person’s gender. These remarks can be about one person directly, or can also be general offensive comments about one gender in sweeping broad terms.
The harasser can be either a male or female and the harassment can be directed toward either a male or female. The victim and harasser can be of opposite genders or the same gender. Likewise, the job level of the harasser is not a factor in sexual harassment cases either. The harasser can be a direct supervisor or boss, a manager or supervisor in a different area, a same-level co-worker, someone working a level below victim, or even a non-employee like a customer or client of the employer.
Harassment becomes illegal when it is a repetitive or pervasive habit or an extreme action or comment that it is perceived as a direct threat. This results in a hostile or intimidating work environment for the victim or results in an adverse employment action. Single offhand comments or simple teasing is not considered harassment, but if such behaviors persist or escalate, those instances can be used to show a pattern of behavior.
Statute of Limitations
The statute of limitations on filing an employment discrimination or harassment claim is 180 days. That means that your initial filing must be submitted no more than six months from the most recent instance of discrimination or harassment. Because North Carolina requires you to file directly with the EEOC, it can be difficult to know the correct procedure and execute the proper paperwork within the limited time frame.
North Carolina Employment Lawyers Can Help
Hiring an experienced employment law firm or lawyer to process the right claims and complaints can help you meet the narrow time window and also can increase your chances of success with your case.
Whether you are a victim of workplace harassment or discrimination or just have questions about employment contracts or severance agreements, a North Carolina Employment Lawyer can help. Contact us today and let us use our national network of employment lawyers find the best NC employment attorney to represent you in your unique situation.