Were you discriminated against at work in Austin?
Being treated worse because of who you are, in pay, promotion, discipline, scheduling or termination, may be unlawful. Retaliation after you objected or reported it may be unlawful too.
If your workplace rights were violated, you may be able to pursue compensation for lost pay or emotional harm, and hold your employer accountable.
Not sure whether it was "serious enough"? You can request a review even if you never reported it to HR or are still employed.
What discrimination actually looks like, and what the law calls it.
Discrimination is rarely a single dramatic act. It's the pattern, the 'jokes,' the passed-over promotion, the accommodation that never comes, the sudden performance problem after you spoke up. The legal test is whether a protected trait drove how you were treated.
The 'nicknames' are slurs. Everyone laughs, so I'm supposed to laugh too.
The law calls it → racial or national-origin harassment
- Since I started wearing a hijab, I'm suddenly 'not a culture fit' for client meetings. The law calls it → religious discrimination
- They call me 'grandpa' in standups and gave the project I built to someone half my age. The law calls it → age-based harassment and discrimination (40+)
- I asked for a simple schedule change for my disability. Months later, still nothing, and now I'm 'unreliable.' The law calls it → failure to accommodate a disability
- I reported the slurs to HR. Two weeks later my performance was suddenly a problem. The law calls it → retaliation, illegal even if the original complaint isn't proven, as long as it was made in good faith
- The 'legacy engineers' over 40 keep getting 'reorganized' out while the team hires bootcamp grads. The law calls it → age discrimination in restructuring (40+)
These cover race and national origin, disability (and accommodations), age (40 and over), religion (and accommodations), sex and pregnancy, sexual orientation and gender identity, in any industry. If something here is familiar, you don't have to be sure before you ask.
Illustrative situations, not client accounts.
Discrimination at an Austin workplace, because of race, national origin, disability, age (40+), or religion, is prohibited by Texas Labor Code Chapter 21 (employers with 15+) and federal law. The Texas window is short: 180 days with the Texas Workforce Commission, 300 with the EEOC. Austin's city ordinance adds local sexual-orientation and gender-identity protection.
What could taking action help you pursue?
Depending on the facts, legal action may help recover financial losses, address emotional harm, restore employment opportunities, or require workplace changes. Available remedies depend on the facts and applicable law; no outcome is guaranteed.
Recover what you lost
Lost pay, benefits, hours, and employment opportunities tied to the unlawful conduct.
Address the harm
Compensation for emotional distress may be available where the law provides for it.
Restore an opportunity
Some cases may involve reinstatement, promotion, corrected records, or another job-related remedy.
Create accountability
A resolution may include policy changes, training, or other corrective workplace action.
You do not need a perfect record, or even to know whether what happened was illegal, before asking what your options are.
Common concerns we hear from employees
I never reported it to HR.
You may still have legal options. Not reporting immediately does not automatically end your rights, although the specific facts can affect a claim.
I don't have screenshots or witnesses.
You do not need a complete evidence file before contacting us. We can help identify texts, emails, schedules, witnesses, and other evidence that may matter.
I still work there.
You can ask questions while still employed. Retaliating against a worker for opposing unlawful conduct or asserting protected rights may itself be unlawful.
It was a customer or client, not a coworker.
In some circumstances, an employer may be responsible for the conduct of supervisors, coworkers, customers, clients, or other third parties.
Craig J. Ackermann
Shareholder · Admitted in Texas
Craig Ackermann represents Texas employees in harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and wage matters. He is licensed in California, Washington, and Texas.
Read Craig's full bio →Real verdicts and recoveries in harassment and discrimination cases.
$15 million
1 plaintiff · Gender pay & promotion discrimination, jury verdict (punitive damages under federal + Oregon law)
Jury verdict, subject to post-trial proceedings. Not a settlement or a collected recovery.
$1.3 million
19 Black construction workers · Racial harassment (hostile work environment)
$1 million
27 Black construction workers · Racial harassment (hostile work environment)
$725,000
14 individuals · Racial harassment (14 individual arbitrations)
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
What happens after you reach out?
You don't need documents, a lawyer-ready story, or even certainty that what happened was illegal.
- 01
Talk with us
A short initial conversation about what happened and when.
- 02
We assess the record
We identify possible claims, deadlines and evidence that may matter.
- 03
If we take the case
We handle the filing strategy, negotiations and litigation.
Deadlines can depend on where and how you file
Texas and federal claims may follow different filing routes. These are general time limits, not sequential steps.
Generally, to file a discrimination complaint with the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division.
Texas Labor Code ch. 21 ↗Often, to file an EEOC charge when the claim is also covered by state or local anti-discrimination law.
EEOC, How to File a Charge ↗Generally, to file a lawsuit after receiving a TWC right-to-sue notice.
Texas Labor Code ch. 21 ↗Other claims and exceptions may have different or shorter deadlines. Contact counsel promptly so the applicable dates can be reviewed.
Texas Labor Code Chapter 21, "Employment Discrimination" (commonly known as the Texas Commission on Human Rights Act / TCHRA)
Tex. Lab. Code Ann. ch. 21
Primary source, Tex. Lab. Code Ann. ch. 21 ↗Share what happened in about two minutes. The firm will review your submission and contact you about possible options and next steps. There is no cost or obligation to request a review.
Deadlines and filing issues for workers in Austin.
- Discrimination claims in Texas get 180 days at the TWC, the statute orders late complaints dismissed.
- The 300-day clock on race, age, disability, or religion is the federal EEOC window, the Texas state (TWC) discrimination deadline is just 180 days, and the TWC's own 300-day window is sexual-harassment-only.
- Texas requires the agency step first, court comes after the TWC, never instead of it.
- Austin's city ordinance runs on its own clock, confirm it with the city office before relying on it.
Local filing and enforcement information for Austin workers.
The sources below are public agency actions and filing information, not this firm's cases. They illustrate how claims have been handled and do not predict the outcome of another matter.
- Race / national origin EEOC v. Austin Foam Plastics (W.D. Tex., Austin Division): $600,000 settlement (October 2010) of a suit alleging African-American employees were subjected to racially offensive comments, jokes, and images that denigrated them, part of a combined harassment case in which the EEOC also alleged sexual harassment and the firing of a worker who complained. official source ↗
- Statewide, every industry Texas workers filed 6,990 EEOC charges in FY 2022, about 9.5% of all charges in the country. Retaliation appeared in 58% of Texas charges. official source ↗
These are public government enforcement actions by the EEOC, not this firm's cases. Agency and state filing routes for Austin follow below.
Where do you file a workplace discrimination claim in Austin?
Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division
Civil Rights Division (mailing)101 E 15th Street
Austin, TX 78778
(888) 452-4778 File online →
EEOC San Antonio Field Office
There is no EEOC office in Austin, Travis, Williamson, Hays, Bastrop, and Caldwell counties are served by the San Antonio Field Office. Most Austinites file online via the EEOC Public Portal.
Legacy Oaks, Building A, 5410 Fredericksburg Road, Suite 200San Antonio, TX 78229
1-800-669-4000 EEOC Public Portal →
Travis County Civil District Courts
Travis County Civil & Family Courts Facility1700 Guadalupe Street
Austin, TX 78701
Federal (Title VII): U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas, Austin Division
City of Austin Civil Rights Division (Office of Equity and Inclusion)
Austin has its own civil rights office (created 2020) enforcing the city's anti-discrimination ordinance (City Code Ch. 5-3). Its main value: broader protected classes (Austin codified sexual orientation and gender identity protections before state law) and a local venue. Note: per the city’s complaint form, city complaints follow a 180-day window (300 days for sexual harassment), confirm current rules with the office.
(512) 974-3251The filing path, step by step
- 1Document the pattern, dates, comments, who was promoted or kept, accommodation requests. Texas deadlines are short and mandatory.
- 2File with the TWC Civil Rights Division online via EDISS (or by mail to 101 E 15th St) within 180 days, or the EEOC within 300. Charges dual-file.
- 3City option: Austin's Civil Rights Division (512-974-3251), broader protected classes; per the city's complaint form, 180 days (300 for sexual harassment).
- 4After a right-to-sue notice: 60 days for a state-law suit in the Travis County Civil District Courts; a federal Title VII suit has 90 days, in the W.D. Tex. Austin Division.
Employment discrimination information in other Texas cities
- DallasEmployment-discrimination information
- El PasoEmployment-discrimination information
- Fort WorthEmployment-discrimination information
- HoustonEmployment-discrimination information
- San AntonioEmployment-discrimination information
Asked by Austin workers.
I'm the only Black engineer on my Austin team and the 'jokes' never stop, is that illegal?
Yes. Race-based harassment and discrimination violate Texas Labor Code Chapter 21 at employers with 15 or more employees and federal Title VII. You have only 180 days to file with the Texas Workforce Commission, far shorter than sexual harassment's 300. Austin's thin-HR startups are not exempt; document the pattern and act early.
At 50 I keep getting passed over at Austin startups for 'culture fit', is that age discrimination?
It can be. The federal ADEA and Texas Chapter 21 protect workers 40 and older (the ADEA needs 20+ employees; Chapter 21 reaches employers with 15+). 'Culture fit,' 'digital native,' or 'energy' language and being passed over for much younger hires can be evidence. File with the Texas Workforce Commission within 180 days, and gather who was promoted and their ages.
My Austin employer ignored my disability accommodation request, what are my rights?
Texas Chapter 21 and the federal ADA require employers with 15 or more workers to provide reasonable accommodations and engage in good faith. Ignoring a request, then disciplining you, can be unlawful. File the state charge within 180 days and the ADA claim with the EEOC (300 days).
Am I protected from discrimination for being transgender at my Austin job?
Yes. After the Supreme Court's Bostock decision, federal Title VII treats it as sex discrimination, enforced by the EEOC across Texas (300-day window). Austin goes further, the city codified sexual-orientation and gender-identity protections, enforced by its Office of Civil Rights, though the city window is much shorter.