Ohio ( OH ) Employment Discrimination Law in the Workplace

August 24th, 2006 Posted by Karen

My research into employment discrimination laws in the workplace within the United States has inevitably taken me to Ohio. This state’s employment discrimination laws in the workplace do not have much expansion on the standards set by the federal employment discrimination laws in the workplace.

Ohio’s employment discrimination laws in the workforce make it illegal to discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, color, handicap, national origin, race, religion, or sex. These statues also make smaller businesses (4 or more employees) accountable where the federal government only holds businesses with 15 or more employees accountable and age discrimination cases are eligible for more compensation for damages than other discrimination cases.

Claims in Ohio can be filed with one of two agencies: the state agency, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission (OCRC), or the federal agency, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). These agencies will work together to resolve you claim as long as you file in one agency and request that your claim be cross-filed with the other. The EEOC can be contacted at one of two offices: Cincinnati Phone: (513) 684-2851 or TTY: (513) 684-2074, and Cleveland Phone: (216) 522-2001 or TTY: (216) 522-8441. The OCRC can be contacted at one of the following office:

  • Columbus
    Phone: (614) 466-2785
    Toll-Free: (888) 278-7101
  • Akron
    Phone: (330) 643-3100
    TTY: (330) 643-3100
    Counties served: Wayne, Summit, Stark, Portage, Trumbull, Mahoning, Columbiana, Knox, Holmes, Coshocton, Tuscarawas, Carroll, Jefferson, Harrison
  • Cincinnati
    Phone: (513) 852-3344
    TTY: (513) 852-3344
    Counties served: Butler, Hamilton, Clermont, Clinton, Warren, Brown, Fayette, Highland, Adams, Pike, Scioto, Vinton, Jackson, Lawrence, Gallia, Meigs
  • Cleveland
    Phone: (216) 787-3150
    TTY: (216) 787-3150
    Counties served: Lorain, Cuyahoga, Lake, Geauga, Ashtabula, Erie, Huron, Richland, Medina, Ashland
  • Columbus
    Phone: (614) 466-5928
    TTY: (614) 752-2391
    Counties Served: Franklin, Union, Madison, Delaware, Pickaway, Licking, Fairfield, Hocking, Muskingum, Perry, Athens, Morgan, Guernsey, Noble, Washington, Belmont, Monroe, Ross, Marion, Morrow
  • Dayton
    Phone: (937) 285-6500
    TTY: (937) 285-6500
    Counties Served: Darke, Preble, Shelby, Miami, Montgomery, Logan, Champaign, Clark, Greene, Van Wert, Mercer, Allen, Auglaize, Hardin
  • Toledo
    Phone: (419) 245-2900
    TTY: (419) 245-2900
    Counties Served: Williams, Defiance, Paulding, Fulton, Henry, Putnam, Lucas, Wood, Hancock, Ottawa, Sandusky, Seneca, Wyandot, Crawford

Claims through the OCRC must be filed within 180 days of the date of the discriminatory act while you have 300 days of this act to file with the EEOC. Because of the difference in deadlines it is best to first file through the OCRC and then have them cross-file your claim with the EEOC. File early to avoid delays due to legalities in the filing process as these delays can push your past the deadline. Retaining an attorney is a big help, but is not required.

If your claim is not resolved by these agencies, you may need to pursue it in court. Ohio does not require you to file with the OCRC before you file a case in the state courts, but the federal courts do require that you file your claim through the EEOC before you are able to file in the federal court system. Additionally, the EEOC must release your claim by giving you one of two documents: “Dismissal and Notice of Rights,” or “Right to Sue.” A claim filed in federal court must be filed within 90 days of receiving either of the above documents. Lawsuits filed in Ohio’s state court system have a 6 year time limit from the time the discriminatory act occurred unless your case is age related, in which case you have only 180 days.

Although Ohio does not really broaden federal laws concerning employment discrimination in the workplace, they do allow for a separate state agency to help with investigation and resolution of discrimination cases.

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Posted in Discrimination, Employment Laws, Hostile Environment, Ohio

  1. Posted by: paul maki

    I have recently became aware that I have had all the symptoms of traumatic brain injury because it has gotton worse because of my age and my work enviroment. I work in a small tool shop that contracts with goverment to make parts for the military and i have been forced to cut corners and use toxic chemicals. I was never informed of proper safety equipment or given instructions such as MSDS sheets for 6 years. I have been painting using goverment specific dangerous chemicals without proper protection and forced to rig parts to get them out the door and fool the goverment inspectors using uncertified welders and painters and sending false certifications on material. Also since my condition has worsened i have been harressed by a incompetent office worker that has been harassing me about everything, telling me i am moving too slow so they want to lay me off. She tells me i run the machine too slow and has no clue what a machinest is. I have witnessed that she continually causes me confusion and makes decisions which cause jobs to be late canceled and blames us in back when she can’t even print out a packing slip and can not even read. I feel she is targeting me for harressment because i can’t keep up with her disasters she causes and fix the problems her ignorance causes. She constantly accuses me of being on drugs and not doing my job when i have told them numerous times i had injuries from an automobile accidenent. Still, she degrades me and makes insulting comments as well as sexual comments and puts her hands on me and always rubbing up on me interferring in my work telling me i am too slow and has to jump into my space and start grabbing things and confusing me distracting me and causing mistakes on counts and shipping mistakes and i alos believe i was discriminated against me making me work under the table and hold back 9 weeks of pay when i first started in 2006

  2. Posted by: Amelia

    Hi paul! There are a number of different issues in your post. It sounds like you had a head injury due to a non-work-related automobile accident years ago. Recently, the confusion and disorientation are increasing, which you blame on exposure to chemicals at work and unsafe work practices. First, you should see a doctor to determine if you have a traumatic brain injury, and if the complications are work-related. If so, then the complications would be covered under workers’ comp and you should file a workers comp claim.

    It may be that your traumatic brain injury meets the EEOC definition of a disability in the workplace. If so, under ADA, the Americans with Disabilities Act, you are entitled to a reasonable accommodation for your disability by the employer. This federal law applies to employers with 15 or more workers. In your case, a reasonable accommodation might be not being interrupted while you are working, or having correct information printed before you start work. Contact the EEOC at http://www.eeoc.gov about reasonable accommodations for your situation. When the office worker harasses you about working too slowly or accusing you of being on drugs, this may be illegal discrimination against an employee with a disability, under ADA.

    You don’t mention if you have discussed the problems with this office worker with her boss, the business owner or an HR person. If this is practical, you should have a tactful discussion about the fact that her interference reduces productivity. Try to be as objective as possible, but also explain that she is sexually harassing you. If that is not practical (maybe she’s the owner’s daughter) or not effective, then we advise you take stronger measures.

    We are also going to advise that you file complaints with a number of federal and state agencies. Under federal whistle-blower laws, the employer cannot retaliate against you when you file a complaint in good faith.

    You should contact OSHA and file a complaint about the unsafe working conditions and lack of MSDS sheets in the workplace, if you are currently working under those conditions. (If that was 6 years ago, it is probably too late to file a complaint now.)

    File a complaint with the OFCCP or Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs at http://www.dol.gov/OFCCP/index.htm about substandard work on government contracts, such as “rigging” parts and using non-certified welders (and painters?) and false certifications. Have specific examples of substandard products that they can check. Also file a complaint with the federal agency for which the parts are manufactured. If they are being sold to the Department of Defense, then file a complaint with the Department of Defense.

    When the office worker makes sexual remarks to you, puts her hands on you and rubs herself against you, that is sexual harassment, a type of illegal discrimination. Let her supervisor know about this problem. If the supervisor does not put an end to it, start keeping a written record of the dates and times that the office worker does this, and the names of any witnesses. After you have a record of several incidents, file a complaint of sexual harassment with the EEOC at http://www.eeoc.gov.

    Unfortunately, grabbing things, confusing or distracting you and violating your personal space are probably not discrimination. They are not good management, they may be unsafe, but they are probably legal.

    The most serious of these problems is that you were required to work without being paid for 9 weeks in 2006. This is a violation of both federal and state minimum wage laws. Unfortunately, you only have 3 years to file a complaint under the federal minimum wage law. Because of this limit, you should immediately file a complaint with the Ohio Division of Industrial Standards and Worker Safety at http://com.ohio.gov/laws/ . If they are unable to help you, file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor at http://www.dol.gov. HTH, and thanks for reading the blogs!~ Amelia

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