Before You File an EEOC Charge

Start With The Decision

Write one sentence for each disputed action:

• I was not selected for [position] on [date].
• My accommodation request was denied or left unresolved on [date].
• I received [discipline] on [date].
• My schedule/pay/assignment changed on [date].
• I was discharged on [date] and told [reason].

A charge may involve more than one action, but each action needs a date, actor, and factual connection to a protected basis or activity. Words such as harassment, discrimination, retaliation, and hostile environment are legal labels. They do not replace the underlying facts.

Verify The Filing Route

An online inquiry is not necessarily a formal charge. An intake interview is not necessarily a formal charge. A draft charge is not filed until the required filing step is complete. Save the inquiry confirmation, appointment information, signed charge, charge number, and filing confirmation separately.

Check the official agency instructions for the applicable deadline and forum. Do not assume the longest deadline applies. If a state or local agency is involved, confirm whether and how the charge is cross-filed rather than relying on a general statement from a website.

Build A Three-Page Core File

Before attaching dozens of documents, prepare three short working documents.

1. Decision Chronology

List date; event; actor; exact action; stated reason; source; and unanswered question. Distinguish the date a decision was prepared, approved, communicated, and discovered.

2. Decision-Maker And Knowledge Map

Identify who supplied information, recommended action, reviewed the matter, approved the action, and communicated it. For discrimination, identify what the relevant people knew about the protected characteristic or request. For retaliation, preserve the complaint and knowledge chain, then use Retaliation.org for specialist analysis.

3. Claim-To-Source Map

For each important fact, identify the source: personal observation, original document, system record, witness, public record, or inference. Mark missing evidence and who likely controls it.

Preserve The Employer'S First Explanation

The first explanation may appear in a meeting, email, termination notice, performance document, unemployment submission, or text message. Preserve the exact source. Later explanations may be more detailed or different. A change can matter, but not every added detail is false.

If the employer gave no explanation, record that carefully rather than inventing one. If several people gave different explanations, keep each version by speaker and date.

Include The Facts That Hurt

A strong file includes adverse facts. These may include performance problems, attendance issues, policy violations, inconsistent statements, rejected alternatives, legitimate restructuring, stronger qualifications of another applicant, or a delay in reporting.

The purpose is not to argue against yourself. It is to understand the employer's likely defense before the position statement arrives. A theory that survives its strongest adverse fact is more useful than a narrative built by omission.

Preserve Lawfully

Save records you lawfully possess before access ends, but do not take trade secrets, privileged material, private coworker records, or information you are not entitled to access. Preserve original files and threads where possible. Screenshots are useful but may omit metadata and context.

Do not continue accessing an employer system after authorization ends. Do not use another person's credentials. Do not covertly record without understanding the law that applies.

Choose Supporting Documents For A Reason

Documents should support a material point. A useful initial set may include:

• the decision notice;
• the complaint, request, or protected communication;
• the employer's response;
• relevant policy or job requirement;
• representative performance or qualification records;
• key messages;
• relevant leave, accommodation, pay, or attendance records; and
• a short chronology.

A 300-page upload with no index can obscure the point. Keep the larger archive locally and submit a focused set when appropriate.

Write The Charge With Discipline

A supportable charge usually identifies:

• the employer and work location;
• the protected basis or legally protected context;
• the concrete employment action;
• dates and responsible actors;
• the factual connection between protected status/activity and action;
• material comparators, statements, deviations, or sequence where known; and
• continuing or later acts that require separate attention.

Do not state speculation as fact. Do not overclaim statutes you have not researched. Do not omit a critical date because it is inconvenient.

Plan For The Next Stage Before Filing

Ask what happens if:

• mediation is offered next week;
• the employer submits a detailed position statement;
• EEOC requests only two categories of information;
• a new retaliatory event occurs;
• the matter closes sooner than expected; or
• counsel asks for the full administrative record.

A charge-ready file should support those transitions.

When To Seek Help

A short deadline, complex forum question, severance release, arbitration agreement, multiple employers, federal employment, mixed state/federal claims, or an immediate right-to-sue issue may justify prompt legal review. The Find Legal Help page links to official agencies, legal aid, bar referral, and employee-side directories without transmitting any case information.