Were you sexually harassed at work in Houston?
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
- On the refinery turnaround crew the comments never stop, and there's no HR trailer on site to tell. The law calls it → hostile work environment (sexual harassment)
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.
Houston workers file harassment claims with the TWC Civil Rights Division or the EEOC Houston District Office on Smith Street. General claims get 180 days; sexual harassment gets 300, and Texas now covers sexual harassment at employers with a single employee. Miss the window and that route closes, so act early.
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.
$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
Texas and federal claims may follow different filing routes. These are general time limits, not sequential steps.
Generally, to file a sexual-harassment 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.
- On a general harassment claim the TWC clock is 180 days, the statute directs the agency to dismiss anything filed late, no matter how strong the facts.
- Only sexual harassment gets the longer 300-day TWC window; a race, age, or disability complaint filed on day 220 is already too late.
- Texas makes you exhaust the agency first, a lawsuit filed before the TWC or EEOC process runs its course gets dismissed.
- Once the right-to-sue letter arrives you have 60 days to sue, and an outer two-year ceiling keeps running the whole time.
- If your employer has fewer than 15 people, the state sexual-harassment route (one-employee coverage) may be your only harassment claim, federal Title VII won't reach them.
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.
- Healthcare, Bellaire (Houston area) EEOC v. First Street Surgical Center / First Surgical Partners (S.D. Tex., Houston Division): $290,000 settlement (2009) over allegations that a male nurse subjected female staff at the Bellaire surgical facility to unwanted advances and sexual innuendo, and that women who complained or refused were retaliated against, including a nurse fired one day after filing a written complaint. 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 sexual harassment 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
- 1Write down everything while it's fresh, dates, who was there, texts, schedules. Texas deadlines are short and the agency enforces them strictly.
- 2Sexual harassment: file with the TWC Civil Rights Division through the online EDISS portal within 300 days, or with the EEOC Houston District Office (1919 Smith St, 6th Floor) within 300 days. A charge with one agency cross-files with the other.
- 3Any other harassment or discrimination: the TWC window is only 180 days.
- 4After a right-to-sue notice: 60 days for a state-law (TCHRA) suit in the Harris County Civil District Courts (201 Caroline St); a federal Title VII suit runs 90 days from the EEOC notice, in the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division.
Sexual-harassment information in other Texas cities
- AustinWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- DallasWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- El PasoWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- Fort WorthWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- San AntonioWorkplace sexual-harassment information
Asked by Houston workers.
I work at a small Houston taqueria with 8 employees, can I still bring a sexual harassment claim?
Yes. Since September 2021, Texas covers sexual harassment at employers with one or more employees, and you have 300 days to file with the TWC. Under 15 employees, federal Title VII doesn't apply, so the state route is often the only route, and it controls.
I'm harassed on an oilfield crew that rotates between Houston yards and remote sites, does Texas law protect me?
Generally yes, if you work for a Houston-based employer or staffing company: Texas Labor Code Chapter 21 (employers with 15+) and Title VII both reach you, with the standard 180/300-day windows. Being stationed far from HR doesn't strip your rights, it just makes documenting the conduct and timeline more important.
Where do I file an EEOC charge in Houston?
The Houston District Office in the Mickey Leland Building, 1919 Smith Street, 6th Floor, or online through the EEOC Public Portal, which most people use. The district office also covers a wide swath of Southeast Texas beyond Harris County.
My hospital 'looked into' my complaint and nothing changed, is that enough?
Maybe not. Once an employer knows or should have known about sexual harassment, Texas requires 'immediate and appropriate corrective action', a standard courts have read as demanding. An investigation that leaves the harasser in place, and you still exposed, can itself be the violation. Save the timeline and talk to a lawyer.
Can I be fired for reporting my supervisor at a Houston Ship Channel warehouse?
No, Texas Labor Code §21.055 makes punishing someone for reporting its own violation, and you don't have to win the underlying harassment claim, only to have raised it in good faith. On the docks and in plants that retaliation often shows up as a sudden shift change, a bad assignment, or a write-up right after you spoke up.
Which court would hear my Houston harassment lawsuit?
State-law claims go to the Harris County Civil District Courts at the civil courthouse, 201 Caroline Street. Federal Title VII claims go to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division. Which court, and which claims to bring, is a strategy call your lawyer makes with you.