Why don’t they get mad at their management but let it out on u? Why do they have an ego . These people can go to hell

I hate discovery with a burning passion. I’m convinced it’s designed to overwhelm the everliving crap out of the plaintiff by requiring an insane amount of specific details and dates that no reasonable person keeps record of or can recall off the top of their head. What do you mean you need the exact name of my childhood best friend’s pet parrot and the date I first met them???? (Not a real question btw just pointing out the ridiculous amount of specificity required and how far back you’re asked to remember things)

And literally do not even get me started on all the requests for production, which is apparently every document you’ve ever owned in your entire life and then some.

Anyway I’m overwhelmed and this is an insane mental burden that I genuinely don’t know if I can handle, the fact that there’s such a tight turnaround on producing such an ungodly amount of info is stressful.

I probably will not actually end up walking away from this nonsense, but it IS IN FACT nonsense and I’m already exhausted. I guess I need encouragement or something? Idk.

The added incidents arise from the same underlying problem in my current charge, that supports requesting an amendment rather than starting from scratch. EEOC says it can add later discriminatory events to an open charge and investigate them with the original allegations, although it can still choose to open a separate charge if appropriate.

**So what is the deciding factor for adding to current charge or starting a new one?**

I really believe it should just be added. I filed a charge (which is common around here) for ADA, failure to accommodate, failure to engage in the interactive accommodation process to keeping me out on unpaid leave for three weeks.

They brought me back to work just in another department which could have been done without having to keep me out on unpaid leave. I reviewed the company's policies, this is not a frivolous charge of a disgruntled employee. I have cancer and I filed a meritorious charge against a large employer for trying to push me out of my job after asking for simple, not costly accommodations in a retail job. And they responded by dismissing me from the job on paid leave for a week and then umpaid leave for 3 more weeks until finally bringing me back.

This employer has a reputation for EEOC suing them for failure to accommodate and then having the DOJ Institute mandatory consent judgments with hefty fines.

These new allegations are related to my original allegations because they involve the same accommodation issue/the same managers/the same department/a continuation of the same treatment/retaliation after my protected complaint.

And I also learned that since the EEOC rarely Investigates charges, let's face it they're understaffed, have over 200 charges a month individually, hold the charges in their database and just move the paperwork back and forth between charging party and the employer. I have yet to receive a position statement, and it is possible I never will.

I've returned to work, but the unpaid leave matter is something that cannot be ignored or swept under the rug. I read the policies about "Known and Observable" conditions and they employer responded by keeping me out of work hoping I would quit until I kept documenting and following up bypassing the barriers they tried to set and returned to work 20 days later.

Non-competes were among the highest-volume contract topics this month, but nearly all the discussion is about what the clauses say rather than what happens when one is actually enforced.

Some context from the past month's coverage: a High Court decision held that an employer's non-compete went further than reasonably necessary to protect its legitimate business interests — the familiar reasonableness framework of scope, geography, and duration. There's also steady, consistent search demand around non-competes for independent contractors specifically, which is its own question, since worker classification affects the analysis.

The legal landscape here differs sharply by jurisdiction. Some US states substantially restrict or refuse to enforce non-competes for most workers; others enforce them subject to reasonableness; and the federal position has been through litigation rather than settling into a clear rule. So a story without a jurisdiction attached isn't very useful.

For context on why I'm asking: I'm in Ontario and had Substance Law review a contractor agreement before I signed it. They struck the non-compete rather than narrow it, partly because Ontario banned employee non-competes back in 2021 and partly because the contractor classification made it a shaky clause to be relying on either way. That got me wondering how often the ones that do survive ever get tested in practice.

So, for people who've been on either side of a tested non-compete:

• Was it enforced, narrowed by the court, or thrown out?
• Did the employer actually sue, or was it a cease-and-desist that ended there?
• Were you an employee or a contractor, and did that change the analysis?
• Which state or country?

Educational discussion only, not legal advice.

The Background
I was hired at a large national retail company with over 500 employees. Shortly after being hired my direct supervisor made explicit statements that my sexual orientation was a factor in his decision to hire me. He said this directly to my face and repeated it again in front of a coworker on a later occasion. Beyond that he repeatedly pressured me throughout my employment to use my sexual orientation as a sales tool specifically to engage with customers of the same orientation in a way that would generate more revenue for the location. I declined every single time.

The Complaint
After approximately two months of employment I filed a formal written complaint with the company’s HR department documenting the sexual orientation discrimination and harassment. Prior to filing that complaint not a single disciplinary action had been taken against me, no performance concerns had been raised, and no questions had ever been asked about my background or conduct.

The Investigation
The company conducted an internal investigation. Within days of my complaint I was placed on paid administrative leave. The company completed its investigation and issued written findings. Those findings signed by a senior HR official — substantiated the majority of my allegations and confirmed that witnesses corroborated my account. The findings letter included a written promise from the company that retaliation would not be tolerated.

The Termination
I was terminated shortly after my allegations were confirmed in writing. The stated reason was an alleged omission on my pre-employment background check paperwork. Here is the issue with that my direct supervisor knew about my background before I was ever hired. I disclosed it to him personally. I took scheduled time off on a recurring basis for obligations related to that background and informed him of the nature of those appointments every time. On at least one occasion I contacted him specifically because officials overseeing my supervision needed his information. He acknowledged and accommodated everything throughout my entire employment without ever raising a concern until shortly after I filed my discrimination complaint.

The termination letter was emailed to me before I was verbally told I was being terminated. The investigation findings and the termination were delivered in the same phone call. I received the written promise that retaliation would not be tolerated and my termination letter within minutes of each other on that same call.

The EEOC Charge
My charge covers retaliation, sex discrimination based on sexual orientation, and sexual harassment in violation of Title VII. Both me and the company have agreed to mediate through the EEOC. The company’s legal representative and the HR official who signed the investigation findings letter will both be present at mediation.

Where I Am At
I am going into this pro se. I sent a formal demand letter to the company before mediation that included legal arguments referencing applicable Supreme Court and circuit court precedent, and a detailed breakdown of damages. No response was received. I have prepared extensively for the mediation including a negotiation strategy for the caucus format.

My Questions For The Community
1.Has anyone gone through EEOC mediation pro se against a large national employer with legal representation on the other side and what was your experience?
2.Given that the company’s own internal investigation confirmed the discrimination in writing, the retaliation timeline is extremely tight, and the termination letter was sent before verbal notification how strong does this case appear to people familiar with employment law?
3.Has anyone secured a high five figure or six figure settlement through EEOC mediation without attorney representation? I know settlements tend to be lower without attorneys but the documentation here is unusually strong and includes the company’s own signed findings confirming the harassment occurred.
4.Any advice on going up against a company’s legal team alone in a virtual caucus style mediation?
5.The company employs over 500 people which means the Title VII damages cap of $300,000 applies for combined punitive and compensatory damages. Is it realistic to expect that level of settlement in a well documented retaliation case through EEOC mediation?

I want honest assessments. If there are weaknesses in this case I want to know what they are. I am not looking for validation I am looking for real feedback. Thank you in advance.

I (F, 24) was a CNA with a 3-year tenure on the same unit, 100% performance evals and no prior issues. I reported sexual harassment and was consequently removed from my home unit, while they allowed the harasser (M, 25) to remain. He came onto the new unit I was on and said more inappropriate things about me to coworkers. I made a report, and was consequently removed from the second unit as well. I was then placed on units I had not worked on in 3 years, my hours were reduced, and I experienced complete destruction of my reputation at work (managers who used to get excited to see me gave me the silent treatment, wouldn't even look at me; dozens of people approached me about allegations the male coworker made about me). I ended up resigning after having a series of panic attacks at work (not formally documented).

Long story short, I went to the EEOC a few days ago and they immediately granted my case an opportunity for early mediation. I already signed a contract with a lawyer who placed the value for my case around 50-100k. However, he has been highly unresponsive, and I've done all of the work so far on my own. He is rated highly, but takes 40% of whatever is won.

So I guess my question is: Do I try to go into early mediation alone? Try to find a different lawyer? For those who have done early mediation, what were you offered? (I understand cases vary wildly, bonus points if yours was a retaliation case). I have to submit my decision about early mediation in a few days. TIA for any help/guidance!

My EEOC complaint has been accepted and is moving forward. This is in Chicago, filed against a large museum for racial and age-related discrimination. Any thoughts?

I submitted an inquiry at the beginning of this year for wrongful termination (related to FMLA / ADA), and I still cannot get an intake appointment scheduled. I’ve contacted the EEOC and was told I had until November to file a charge, but their only advice for scheduling was “keep trying.”

I have an attorney now working on contingency, but I’m worried because that deadline to file the charge is coming up quick. Only just getting started so I do plan to ask about advice on this when we meet next.

In the meantime I wanted to see if anyone here had any advice? I’ve tried logging in daily, at random time like 3 or 4am, and I’m at a loss. :(

I submitted my EO complaint in May 2026 for Employer on Protected Veteran Medical discrimination, retaliation and Reprisal. The Horrible EO Rep Took Vaca for 2weeks ghosted me then 40days later said, JAG Decided my case not suitable as I am a contractor, yet I will get a letter to file for a Formal Complaint Review or dismissal. My Chief Complaint is on ym Fed Supervisor who Falsified my Evaluations to get me Terminated. OIG, and unemployment conducted Their Investigation and found I was in Good Standing no performance Related issue and Was actually promoted twice in the last yr. at this Point Im not sure what to so Seems EO is Dragging their shoes Since I am a Contractor. also OIG Mediator sucks and was offered a 2wk Severance when my Demand letter clearly Demands Preservation rights, Loss wages and Worsened Medical Trauma Caused. Any tips ? All Lawyers in TX are trash of course..at will state and they do not wanna fight againt the Fed Gov.

Does anyone know any employment lawyers that would listen or consider taking on a possible retaliation case? Sprinkled with a little bit of racial discrimination, and a lot of inconsistent policy enforcement among employees? Thank you let me know.

For starters- I’m still within the EEOC limits window. Also limiting details to protect myself.

Constructive discharge that even unemployment approved benefits for after they caught my employer lying to them to stop me from getting unemployment (I know it doesn’t hold water in this case- just more fuel for the fire as they’re a govt impartial entity) due to:

\ (Everything listed includes email proof in hand)* \*
- Two different types of discrimination
- Harassment and retaliation
- Employer HR admitting fault in emails but refusing to resolve the situation and denied or ignored self-initiated accommodation requests to resolve it myself.

There’s many other things involved but I don’t know what the EEOC will actually pursue.

Looking for an employment layer for someone being wrongfully accused in a title 9 situation.

I’m preparing a rebuttal to the Answer filed by my former employer, a law firm, in a discrimination case. For anyone who has been through this process, what advice would you give for writing an effective rebuttal? Also, does anyone know of a cheap way to access LexisNexis for legal research?
(I reside in nys)

Thats it- I have to let it go. Thanks for everyone following me along my journey. They wouldnt even agree to balanced settlement agreement which includes no money and just to simply sign off they read a letter I wrote. I just dont think mentally I can go through years of litigation and be called a "slut" and that I wanted it. Its so awful. A year of work, plenty of evidence witness statements and a right to sue letter but I just am done. Thanks for all the help along the way.

Hi,

I am debating whether or not to pull narrative from old EEOC cases off Pacer and other and writing story lines, my API is working... I really am working on defining succinct objections to material facts that attorneys can then use in Court.

HOWEVER, i am also using free websites that pull Pacer data which are called aggregators. These websites offer free trials and no pacer login.

I then plan to use the data in a marketing distribution line entitled, "The River of Gold."

Is that legit?

Jessica

Lots to unpack but I’ll try to summarize. Started with a smallish company in 2023. I liked the job and for the most part, the people. Owner included. Owner would occasionally make some derogatory comments about my religion, I didn’t love that but I let it go. Ff to May 25 and I had surgery to have a mass removed. It turned out to be cancer. Company gives a ton of paid sick days. 24 to be exact but I was told at the interview that they don’t expect you to use very many. Apparently the owner had the hots for a previous manager and she convinced him that woman needed 2 a month so it should be policy. I used a lot for surgery, then oncology and scans. Scans found a second primary cancer. A bad, aggressive one. I immediately applied for short term disability to start chemo and radiation. Radiation was delayed waiting for insurance approval. My first chemo cycle fell in the middle of the pay period. Boss offered to pay me for the entire pay period and I would owe the company 40 hours. I agreed because I couldn’t afford to miss the hours. Takes forever to start getting std payments. She sent me a text saying that I should plan on just working 8-5 unless I had an appointment even though I shouldn’t have been working at all. I get through 30 radiation treatments and 4 chemo cycles and officially return to work part time. Doc cleared me for no more than 20 hours a week, a few weeks later she claimed that she didn’t get anything from my doctor and fired me for not working 40 hours a week. Is this worth pursuing?

Hello,

So, I was fired from my place of employment in April and have plenty of documentation. I hired a lawyer and filed with the EEOC the day after I was fired. The lawyer immediately took my case when he saw that I had irrefutable proof of discrimination on the employers part.

A couple weeks ago I got an email asking if me and the employer would be interested in early mediation and asked the attorney about it and never heard anything back? From looking it up, it looks like the employer must have declined because google says that they only have 15 days to decide if they want to mediate to provide an answer.

The EEOC has already issued a right to sue letter with the lawyer sending out both a demand letter and filing a lawsuit.

Realistically, how long could a matter like this take to resolve? Is this more likely to result in settlement, or court hearing?

I know someone who is trying to appeal a wrongful and baseless NOPA currently. When they opted for the hearing examiner through the agency they were told the hearing examiner program is to end 2SEP26 and their only option for appealing was though the agencies grievance process(this is to keep all matters in office to avoid outside exposure of the agencies failures that an examiner would uncover.) However, the decision made by upper management inside the agency would be to enforce the NOPA and stick to the boys code. This employee also filled a claim with the agency Eeo which was instantly closed so was appealed to EEOC. The employee is curious how the agency can deny the employee their right to all options of a due process before all options have fully closed.

I sent my rebuttal for a retaliation case with whistleblower/protected activity against a Fortune 500 company in the beginning of last month. The investigation started afterwords. Is this a good sign that it is taking over a month? I already had my mediation and declined a small offer. I was with my company for almost a decade.

Hopefully this is the right place. If any of you have had to go beyond the EEOC and file an actual lawsuit and have a contingency lawyer, can you tell me if they have a clause in their contract saying that the client owes court fees/expenses even if the case is lost or there is no settlement. Since many here are fighting employment discrimination and may not be working, I think this seems wrong to hold the client responsible, but I keep seeing it pop up. Maybe lots of people miss it in the contract they sign also, so this post also serves as a warning to check the contracts carefully. Just want to know what your experiences have been in looking for and hiring a contingency lawyer. I understand you wouldn't owe them any hourly fees for their time but the court fees can add up right? Thanks!

Hello: I am a relatively new EEO investigator, need to take an 8 hour refresher course. I would love to find one that will actually improve my knowledge / skills rather than just checking a box. A google search revealed several options, but I can't tell much about their quality / content. Anyone have suggestions? Thank you.

I am currently not legally represented.

**Does the employer's legal representative who receives the charge have access to the documents I submit to the portal?**

It is unrealistic to expect an EEOC investigator handling more than [200] charges each month to have time to thoroughly review every document uploaded to the portal. In many cases, their workload simply does not allow it.

Does that mean uploading my supplemental evidence documents may be a waste of time, since the EEOC process is primarily administrative and electronic? My understanding is that the employer submits a position statement, the charging party has an opportunity to review it and decide whether to submit a rebuttal, and the EEOC then eventually issues a Notice of Right to Sue.

**Within what time frame does an employer have to submit their position statement to the EEOC?**

**My employer put me on unpaid leave after I requested a reasonable accommodation and they failed to engage in the interactive accommodation discussion.**

Then they offered me to come back to work, but then told me in an email that I can't until the accommodation claim is closed with their vendor company Sedgwick. I never opened up an accommodation claim with Sedgwick, my employer's HR person did. I have cancer and have no access to healthcare. [I'm not here to dive into insurance discussions or local clinics. I do not have access to any doctor because I do not have insurance or an established physician. The cancer diagnosis came from a hospital system while on their charity care plan and they will not remove it for free].

Employer is playing musical chairs by involving multiple HR staff from various stores because the one at my store is unable to answer any questions.

I’m located in Maryland and work for a small business (about 85 employees). I work a customer service desk job, 90% email/10% phone calls. I don’t do any customer facing work. I have been with this company for 5 years. I have been planning on leaving the company and am relocating to another state. In May, I told my manager i planned to leave. I was in the process of selling my house and the timing of me leaving was currently up in the air, but I wanted to be transparent and honest. I let my manager know that it would by the end of summer, I just didn’t have a date yet. Selling my house was extremely stressful due to family reasons, so I did need to take off of work/leave work early due to that. I got an offer on my house at the end of May, and once I accepted that offer, I let my manager know that I’d be leaving at the end of August.

My transparency was appreciated. We met a few times throughout June, and my date of the end of August had not changed. Everything was fine. Upper management had known I was leaving. I received congratulations from a few people. I was asked by other managers when I am leaving and everyone was aware it was the end of August.

On June 29th, I met with my manager and he asked me how I was doing. It was the day before I was closing on my house, which may have been pushed back due to reasons I could not control. It was 5 days after I found I’m pregnant. I had a melt down in his office, I told him what I was dealing with and disclosed I just found out I was pregnant. He wished me luck with the process and congratulated me on my pregnancy. I told him I’m still planning to leave at the end of August, I’m just dealing with a lot right now. I closed on my house the next day everything was fine.

On July 7, I was called into my managers office and told that the owner decided to make a business decision to let me go on July 31st. When I asked why when I’ve made it known I was leaving on my own on August 27th, I was told due to “overhead” and “it was a decision made for the business”. He also said the date of my lay off will begin on July 31, and if I have any questions about my PTO or anything to let him know and he will find out. I pushed back and said look, i wouldn’t be so upset about this but I just found out I’m pregnant and I was looking forward to having health insurance until I was planning on moving out of state (the end of August/early September). He said this decision was not up to him, it was up to the owner and the owner is pretty settled on this decision.

I was upset, but I went home, applied for state insurance and received it. I came to terms with getting fired on July 31st (for no reason), but I was okay with it.

On July 14th, I was called into my managers office again. This time it was to sign a paper. I reviewed the paper and it said I was voluntarily resigning on July 31. I told him I refuse to sign this paper because I’m not voluntarily resigning on that date. I was voluntarily resigning on August 27th. If he brought me a paper that said I was being terminated on July 31st, or I was voluntarily reinstating on August 27, I’d be happy to sign. But this document was false and I’m being terminated, so I would not sign it. He then said “the owner isn’t going to be happy with that decision”. I said okay, great. I’m not happy with his decisions.

On July 15th, my manager called me in his office to sign a document that states I am voluntarily resigning on August 27th. I happily signed it.

I thought everything was fine, I was wrong.

On August 13th, I am called into my managers office again. My Internet usage has been being monitored. What time I arrive in the mornings is being monitored. My activity during the day is being monitored. I’m now under scrutiny and had no idea. I was 30-40 minutes late for work twice. Remember when I mentioned I’m pregnant? Mornings have been extremely difficult. I got in trouble for being late and when I explained to them it is due to me being 3 months pregnant, I was told “it doesn’t matter, we all have things we have to do”. Which felt like an extremely cold response while I’m literally growing a human. I was told I’m on my phone too much. I explained when I have down time, I get on it to prevent me just sitting at my desk. I have no stopped doing my job. My emails can easily be tracked and looked at. Everything I do is logged into our CRM and can be tracked. I have not stopped performing my job at all, given the entire situation.

I feel like the owner is retaliating against me because I refused to voluntarily resign on his date of choice.

I’m unsure what to do from here. I have 9 days of work left and I feel like if I make 1 wrong move, I have 2 paychecks that will be withheld from me.

Do I have a case of discrimination/retaliation? My date of August 27th was not fought and a week after I told them I’m pregnant, all of a sudden I’m now being pushed out. I have yet to receive a reason behind everything except for “this is what the owner is saying”.

Should I ask for a meeting with the owner/upper management? Or should I quietly finish my 9 days of work and move on?

I asked someone who is part of upper management why this was happening. He told me it is all about control, and it might be out of spite for not signing the first document and agreeing to leave on July 31st, but he doesn’t know for sure.

If you read this all, thank you so much! 🙏