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Tennessee (TN) Job Discrimination Law in the Workplace

September 20th, 2006 Posted by Rachel

Illegal discrimination occurs when a civil rights law has been violated. These laws in their employment practices bind employers to avoid such action. While the laws in Tennessee do not vary much from that of the federal laws, they do take discrimination in the workforce seriously and afford workers protection from harassment and/or discrimination. In fact they have set up a state agency to handle matters related to discrimination, including educating the public, investigating allegations, and punishing offenders.

Tennessee Human Rights Commission, or THRC is a resource for both the state and the business community alike. Their overall goal is to eliminate discrimination all together. The agency investigates charges and enforces both state and federal laws with regard to employment. Tennessee (TN) job discrimination law in the workplace deems that it is unlawful to discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, handicap, marital status or familial status. It is unlawful for employers, employment agencies or labor organizations to discriminate against any individual for any of these reasons. The law applies to all aspects of employment, from advertising and recruiting for a position to layoff and termination procedures.

If you feel that under Tennessee (TN) job discrimination law in the workplace your rights have been violated in any way or that you have been discriminated against with regard to your employment you have 180 days to file a complaint with the THRC. The Commission has a cooperative agreement with the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which allows the federal and state agencies to coordinate their investigations and avoid duplication of efforts in seeking to end discrimination. If you do not file your complaint within the allotted time period you can still file with the EEOC for up to 300 days from the date the action took place.