Were you sexually harassed at work in Boulder?
Unwanted sexual comments, messages, touching, advances, or pressure involving your job 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 this looks like in real life, and what the law calls it.
Sexual harassment is usually smaller, repeated, and easier to doubt than people expect. The legal test is whether unwelcome conduct tied to sex made your job hostile, it does not have to be physical or loud.
He says the comments are jokes. They're about my body, and they happen every shift.
The law calls it → sexual harassment (hostile work environment)
- My manager hinted my hours depend on how 'friendly' I am after work. The law calls it → quid pro quo sexual harassment
- The comments stopped being about work a long time ago. Now it's my body, my clothes, my dating life. The law calls it → hostile work environment based on sex
- After I turned him down, my good shifts disappeared and my reviews got worse. The law calls it → retaliation, illegal even if the original complaint isn't proven
- They didn't fire me. They just made every day bad enough that I'd quit. The law calls it → constructive discharge
- At our Gunbarrel startup the founder's comments about my body are a running 'joke,' and there is no HR to tell. The law calls it → hostile work environment based on sex
These cover unwelcome sexual advances or comments, quid pro quo (job tied to sexual conduct), hostile work environment based on sex, pregnancy and gender, sexual orientation and gender identity, retaliation for reporting, in any industry. If something here is familiar, you don't have to be sure before you ask.
Illustrative situations, not client accounts.
Boulder workers are protected by the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, and under the 2023 POWR Act, conduct no longer needs to meet the former 'severe or pervasive' test to qualify as harassment under Colorado law. The state filing window is 300 days and CADA covers employers of all sizes, but Boulder's federal-lab employees follow a separate track with only 45 days to contact an agency EEO counselor, and university workers carry additional internal deadlines. Which clock applies depends on who employs you.
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.
Brian Denlinger
Shareholder · Admitted in Colorado
Brian Denlinger is licensed in Colorado and Washington. He represents employees in discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wage-and-hour matters.
Read Brian's full bio →Real verdicts and recoveries in harassment and discrimination cases.
$23.5 million
150 women · Sexual harassment (multi-plaintiff)
$1 million
a group of women · Sexual harassment (multi-plaintiff)
$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)
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
Colorado and federal claims may follow different filing routes. These are general time limits, not sequential steps.
Generally, to file a discrimination or harassment charge with the Colorado Civil Rights Division.
CCRD, Complaint Process ↗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 CCRD right-to-sue notice.
CCRD, Complaint Process ↗Other claims and exceptions may have different or shorter deadlines. Contact counsel promptly so the applicable dates can be reviewed.
Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act (CADA)
C.R.S. § 24-34-401 et seq.
Primary source, C.R.S. § 24-34-401 et seq. ↗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 Boulder.
- Federal-lab employees have 45 DAYS to contact an agency EEO counselor, a fraction of the private-sector window, and Boulder has one of Colorado's largest federal workforces.
- The CCRD window is 300 days, extended from six months in 2022; older Colorado pages still say six months.
- University internal deadlines are shorter than the CADA window and run separately; using one route does not preserve the other.
- After a right-to-sue notice, the 90-day suit window is short and unforgiving.
- Colorado's POWR Act restricts new NDAs covering discriminatory conduct; have any agreement reviewed before assuming it silences you.
Local filing and enforcement information for Boulder 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.
- Labor organizations, Front Range EEOC v. Teamsters Local Union #455 (D. Colo.): $85,000 consent decree (2023) resolving federal claims of sexual harassment by a union business agent, with required policy updates, training for officers and staff, and workplace postings at Colorado locations. official source ↗
These are public government enforcement actions by the EEOC, not this firm's cases. Agency and state filing routes for Boulder follow below.
Where do you file a sexual harassment claim in Boulder?
Colorado Civil Rights Division
Denver (statewide)1560 Broadway, Suite 825
Denver, CO 80202
(303) 894-2997
The CCRD is part of the Department of Regulatory Agencies in Denver. An intake packet can be started online; the division serves the whole state from Denver.
File online →EEOC Denver Field Office
The Denver Field Office covers all of Colorado including Boulder County; there is no EEOC office in Boulder. Most workers file online.
950 17th Street, Suite 300Denver, CO 80202
1-800-669-4000 EEOC Public Portal →
Boulder County District Court (20th Judicial District)
Boulder County Combined Court1777 6th Street
Boulder, CO 80302
The filing path, step by step
- 1Document everything: messages, schedules, complaints, witnesses, and each job action that followed.
- 2Confirm your track first. Federal employees at NIST, NOAA, or other agencies have 45 days to contact their agency's EEO counselor. CU employees have campus and state-personnel routes with their own deadlines. Private-sector workers follow CADA and Title VII.
- 3Private-sector workers: file with the Colorado Civil Rights Division within 300 days (intake starts online), or with the EEOC Denver Field Office within 300 days. One properly cross-filed charge preserves both routes.
- 4After a right-to-sue notice, a CADA suit is generally filed within 90 days at the Boulder County Combined Court, 1777 6th Street.
- 5A Colorado-admitted attorney can confirm the track and the clock before either runs; the initial review has no cost or obligation.
Sexual-harassment information in other Colorado cities
- Colorado SpringsWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- DenverWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- Fort CollinsWorkplace sexual-harassment information
Asked by Boulder workers.
I work at a federal lab in Boulder. Which deadlines apply to me?
Federal employees follow the federal-sector track: 45 days to contact your agency's EEO counselor, a completely different system from CADA's 300 days. Contractors and university-affiliated researchers at the same facilities usually follow the normal CADA and Title VII windows, which is why confirming your actual employer is step one.
Did Colorado's harassment standard really change?
Yes. The 2023 POWR Act removed the former 'severe or pervasive' formulation for Colorado claims and defined harassment in the statute. The facts still control, not every offensive act is actionable, but conduct that once fell short of the old test may now support a state claim.
My startup has nine employees and no HR. Does the law even reach it?
Yes. CADA covers Colorado employers of all sizes, so a nine-person startup is fully covered by state law even though federal Title VII (15+ employees) cannot reach it. No-HR workplaces are where documentation matters most: put complaints in writing, even by text or email.
The harasser is an investor or client, not an employee. Is the company still responsible?
It can be. When an employer knows or should know that a client, investor, or vendor is harassing its workers and fails to act, the employer can be liable. Who the harasser reports to matters less than what the company did after learning about it.
I reported it and got dropped from projects. Is that retaliation?
Possibly. Losing projects, worse assignments, exclusion from meetings, or discipline after opposing harassment can violate CADA independently, even if the underlying harassment claim is never proven. Keep a timeline of the report and each change that followed.
How long do I have to act in Boulder?
Private-sector: 300 days for the CCRD or EEOC, then generally 90 days after a right-to-sue notice. Federal employees: 45 days to contact an EEO counselor. University workers: internal deadlines can be shorter still. Confirming your track early is the safest move.