Workplace Rights Glossary

Plain-English definitions of the agencies, laws, and terms that come up in workplace discrimination, retaliation, and leave claims.

EEOC

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — the federal agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination and harassment and investigates charges filed by employees.

FMLA

The Family and Medical Leave Act — a federal law giving eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave for their own serious health condition, to care for family, or to bond with a new child.

OSHA

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration — the federal agency responsible for workplace safety, which also handles whistleblower retaliation complaints from workers who report hazards.

DOL Wage and Hour Division

The U.S. Department of Labor division that enforces federal wage, overtime, and leave laws, including the FMLA.

Title VII

The part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity), and national origin.

ADA

The Americans with Disabilities Act — prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities and requires employers to provide reasonable accommodations.

Reasonable accommodation

A change to a job, schedule, or workplace that lets an employee with a disability or sincere religious need do their job. Employers must provide one unless it causes undue hardship.

Retaliation

An adverse action — firing, demotion, discipline, or harassment — taken against an employee because they engaged in a protected activity such as complaining about discrimination, requesting leave, or reporting a violation.

Wrongful termination

A firing that breaks the law — for example, one based on discrimination, retaliation, or whistleblowing — as opposed to an ordinary at-will dismissal.

Hostile work environment

Harassment that is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of a person's employment and create an abusive workplace.

Constructive discharge

When an employer makes working conditions so intolerable that a reasonable person would feel forced to resign — treated by law much like a firing.

Protected class

A characteristic — such as race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age (40+), or genetic information — that anti-discrimination laws protect.

Disparate treatment

Intentional discrimination: treating an employee worse than others because of a protected characteristic.

Disparate impact

A facially neutral policy or practice that disproportionately harms a protected group, even without intent to discriminate.

Charge of discrimination

A formal complaint filed with the EEOC or a state fair-employment agency that starts an official investigation. Filing one is usually required before suing.

Right-to-sue letter

A notice from the EEOC stating that an individual has exhausted the agency process and may file a lawsuit in court, typically within 90 days.

Filing deadline (statute of limitations)

The limited window to file a claim. With the EEOC it is generally 180 days, extended to 300 days in states with their own fair-employment agency.

Whistleblower

An employee who reports illegal, unsafe, or fraudulent conduct and is legally protected from retaliation for doing so.

PFML

Paid Family and Medical Leave — state programs that provide paid, job-protected time off, separate from the unpaid federal FMLA.

Work-sharing agreement

An arrangement under which a charge filed with a state fair-employment agency is also treated as filed with the EEOC (and vice versa), preserving rights under both.

Authorized Justice Practitioner

A non-attorney advocate permitted to represent claimants before agencies like the EEOC, OSHA, and the Department of Labor — the model Thurgood uses to provide representation without being a law firm.