There is no EEOC office in Rhode Island. The nearest EEOC area office is in Boston, MA. There are two other area offices that feasibly could be sued which are in Newark, NJ and Buffalo, NY. The District Office is in New York City.
Use the nearest EEOC office to where you are located to make an inquiry or report an infringement of federal anti-discrimination law. In-office visits are not currently available because of Covid-19 restrictions, but you can still use the Public Portal to make an inquiry. Scheduling an intake appointment and conducting an interview with an EEOC staff member can be done by telephone during office hours (Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4.30 p.m.)
The Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) is a federal agency that oversees all federal anti-discrimination laws as they apply to employment. These laws include Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The EEOC investigates and acts on legitimate claims by employees who work for employers with 15 or more employees.
Employees who wish to make a complaint or file a claim but work in smaller workplaces would normally be able to use a state fair employment practices agency (FEPA). In Rhode Island, the principal FEPA is the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights. An additional tribal employment rights office (TERO) is the Narragansett Indian Tribe employments rights office based in Charlestown.
You have 300 days from the date an incidence of discrimination took place to file a complaint with the EEOC in Rhode Island. If you go through the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights, you would have one year from the date of the discriminatory act to file a charge of discrimination.
EEOC Office Information in Rhode Island
The nearest area office is in Boston, Massachusetts. The EEOC District Office is in New York City.
Location of EEOC’s Boston Area Office
JFK Federal Building
15 New Sudbury Street, Room 475
Boston, MA 02203-0506
Phone: 1-800-669-4000
Fax: 617-565-3196
TTY: 1-800-669-6820
ASL Video Phone: 844-234-5122
Director: Feng K. An
Regional Attorney: Jeffrey Burstein
Office Hours: 8.30 – 5 p.m. Monday to Friday for telephone contact only.
Location of the nearest EEOC District Office in New York
New York District Office
33 Whitehall Street, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10004
Phone: 1-800-669-4000
Fax: 212-336-3790
TTY: 1-800-669-6820
ASL Video Phone: 844-234-5122
Director: Judy Keenan
Regional Attorney: Jeffrey Burstein
Office Hours: 9 to 3p.m. for interviews arranged through the Public Portal. No in-office visits are possible at the moment because of Covid-19 restrictions.
State Employment Laws:
Rhode Island has similar laws to the federal government regarding discrimination at work such as the R.I. General Laws Section 28-5-1 et seq. (Fair Employment Practices Act). Discrimination at work because of an employee’s age, gender, sexual orientation, color, religion, ethnicity or disability is illegal.
Any type of sexual harassment at work, such as unsolicited emails, phone calls, physical contact, innuendo, etc., is regarded as a form of sex discrimination and is also illegal. Employees, especially those who work in smaller workplaces, can file a charge of discrimination with the Rhode Island Commission For Human Rights. The procedure is similar to that used by the EEOC and in fact the state FEPA tends to turn over anti discrimination at work cases to the EEOC.
Next Steps To Take
It can be intimidating going through the process of filing a charge of discrimination against your employer. It can help to have an employment law attorney work with you through this process.
The attorney knows the state and federal laws and can help you prepare your case against your employer. The EEOC, or state FEPA, will normally attempt to investigate the complaint. If the EEOC then decides you have grounds to file a lawsuit against your employer in a civil court, the attorney can help prepare a convincing case on your behalf.
Additional Resources
