“EEOC” stands for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
It is a federal agency that is charged with investigating claims of discrimination and harassment and unlawful retaliation in the workplace. It has a state counterpart, usually. In Florida it’s the Florida Civil Rights act, and it usually has a local counterpart. Here: Orlando Commission on Human Relations.
Before filing a lawsuit against an employer for unlawful discrimination or harassment, you have to first allow the EEOC or its counterpart to investigate.
That can result in an early mediation, it can result in a full-blown investigation, but it ultimately ends up resulting in a right-to-sue letter, where you take it to an attorney, and now you can file suit against the employer. If the EEOC takes too long to do their investigation, and it’s been over 180 days, you can ask them to terminate the investigation and give you your right-to-sue letter.
Not all laws and not all claims are required to go through the EEOC, so if you have a question you should let us know and we can help [guide you] through the process.
John Bolanovich is an Orlando commercial litigation and employment law attorney with Bogin, Munns & Munns, a full service law firm with offices in Orlando, Clermont, Cocoa, Kissimmee, Orange City, Daytona Beach, Ocala, Melbourne, Gainesville, Titusville, St. Cloud, The Villages, and Leesburg. He welcomes questions and comments regarding the above and can be reached at jbolanovich@boginmunns.com.
NOTICE: The article above is not intended to serve as legal advice, and you should not rely on it as such. It is offered only as general information. You should consult with a duly licensed attorney regarding your Florida legal matter, as every situation is unique. Please know that merely reading this article, subscribing to this blog, or otherwise contacting Bogin, Munns & Munns does not establish an attorney-client relationship with our firm. Should you seek legal representation from Bogin, Munns & Munns, any such representation must first be agreed to by the firm and confirmed in a written agreement.
