Were you discriminated against at work in Houston?
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 plant runs a 'speak English only' rule, but only the crew from Latin America ever gets written up for it. The law calls it → national-origin discrimination (language rules)
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.
Workplace discrimination in Houston, by race, national origin, disability, age, or religion, is prohibited by Texas Labor Code Chapter 21 (employers with 15 or more) and federal law. Texas gives just 180 days to file with the Texas Workforce Commission; federal charges with the EEOC Houston District Office get 300. Missing the window ends that route.
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 Houston.
- The TWC gives a discrimination charge 180 days, and day 181 is nearly always too late, narrow continuing-violation exceptions aside.
- Two separate 300-day clocks confuse people: the federal EEOC window covers race, age, and disability, but the TWC's own 300-day window is sexual-harassment-only. A state discrimination charge is still due in 180 days.
- You can't bypass the agency and file straight in a Houston court, administrative exhaustion is mandatory in Texas.
- With a right-to-sue letter you have 60 days to file, all inside an absolute two-year outer limit.
Local filing and enforcement information for Houston 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.
- Food manufacturing, Humble (Houston metro) EEOC v. Lawler Foods (S.D. Tex., Houston Division): $1,042,000 consent decree (2016) resolving allegations that the Humble-area bakery refused to hire Black and other non-Hispanic applicants for entry-level jobs, relying on word-of-mouth recruiting and Spanish-language preferences that screened them out. official source ↗
These are public government enforcement actions by the EEOC, not this firm's cases. Agency and state filing routes for Houston follow below.
Where do you file a workplace discrimination claim in Houston?
EEOC Houston District Office
Mickey Leland Building, 1919 Smith Street, 6th FloorHouston, TX 77002
(713) 651-4900 EEOC Public Portal →
Harris County Civil District Courts
Harris County Civil Courthouse201 Caroline Street
Houston, TX 77002
The filing path, step by step
- 1Keep a record, comments, dates, who was promoted or kept, every accommodation request. Texas deadlines are short and mandatory.
- 2File with the TWC Civil Rights Division through EDISS within 180 days, or with the EEOC Houston District Office (1919 Smith St) within 300. The charge cross-files between the two agencies.
- 3You must finish the agency process before you can sue in Texas.
- 4After a right-to-sue notice: 60 days, state claims in the Harris County Civil District Courts, federal claims in the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division.
Employment discrimination information in other Texas cities
- AustinEmployment-discrimination information
- DallasEmployment-discrimination information
- El PasoEmployment-discrimination information
- Fort WorthEmployment-discrimination information
- San AntonioEmployment-discrimination information
Asked by Houston workers.
My Houston plant enforces 'English only' and coworkers mock my accent, is that legal?
It may be national-origin discrimination. Ridiculing an accent, ethnic slurs, or a blanket English-only rule not justified by genuine business necessity can violate Chapter 21 (employers with 15+) and Title VII. File with the Texas Workforce Commission within 180 days. In Houston's heavily immigrant industrial workforce these issues are common and very much actionable.
My Houston employer won't accommodate my disability, what are my options?
Chapter 21 and the ADA require employers with 15 or more workers to provide reasonable accommodations, a modified schedule, equipment, leave, or adjusted duties. Refusing to accommodate and then disciplining you are separate violations. File the state charge within 180 days; a lawyer can file the ADA claim with the EEOC in parallel.
At 56 I was cut from a Houston energy company in a 'reorg' while younger engineers stayed, age discrimination?
Possibly. The federal ADEA and Chapter 21 protect workers 40 and older (the ADEA needs 20+ employees; Chapter 21 reaches employers with 15+). Downturn layoffs that fall heaviest on older staff, or 'not the future of the company' talk, can be evidence. The TWC deadline is 180 days, save the ages of who stayed and who was let go.
I'm a warehouse temp at the Port of Houston, mocked for my race and national origin, who is liable?
Potentially both the staffing agency and the worksite employer. Chapter 21 reaches employers and employment agencies, and dual-employer setups are the norm in Houston port and warehouse work. Don't let the two point fingers at each other, that's a legal question, not yours to untangle. File within 180 days and name both.