Equal Opportunity is the Law

Everyone should be treated fairly. It’s not just our opinion, it’s the law.

Did you know that it's illegal for any organization that gets federal money to discriminate (to treat unfairly) because of:

• Race, color, religion, or sex (this includes pregnancy, childbirth, related medical conditions, gender identity, and being transgender).
• National origin (including if someone has limited English skills).
• Age.  
• Disability.
• Political beliefs.
• If someone is in programs funded under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) based on citizenship status or participation in any WIOA program.

We also can’t (and wouldn’t) treat you unfairly when it comes to things like:

• Deciding who can join or participate in WIOA programs or activities.
• Treating people unfairly in WIOA programs or activities.
• Making employment decisions related to WIOA programs.

Know More

Want to read the official Equal Opportunity Notice (DE 503)? Just choose your preferred language. You may need to download the free Adobe Reader to view and print documents.

English |  Armenian |  Traditional Chinese |  Simplified Chinese |  Spanish |  Tagalog |  Vietnamese |  Arabic |  Khmer |  Farsi |  Hindi |  Japanese |  Korean |  Punjabi |  Russian |  Thai

What To Do If You Were Treated Unfairly

If you think you were discriminated against in a WIOA-funded program, you can file a complaint within 180 days. You can file with:

• The Equal Opportunity Officer of the organization
• The Director, Civil Rights Center (CRC) at the U.S. Department of Labor

If you file with the organization, you’ll have to wait for either a written decision (Notice of Final Action) or 90 days — whichever comes first — before filing with the CRC.

If you don’t get a written response from the organization within 90 days, you have 30 more days to file with the CRC (120 days total from when you first filed).

If you receive a decision but aren’t happy with it, you can still file a complaint with the CRC within 30 days of receiving the decision.

How to File a Complaint:

To file a complaint, you can use the EDD Discrimination Complaint Form (DE 8498). Forms are available in multiple languages, including:

English | Armenian | Arabic | Khmer | Traditional Chinese | Simplified Chinese | Farsi | Hindi | Japanese | Korean | Punjabi | Russian | Spanish | Tagalog | Thai | Vietnamese

For more information on how to file, visit Civil Rights Center.

How to Submit Your Complaint