KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

Sexual Orientation and 

Gender Identity Discrimination

OFCCP Protects You Against 

Discrimination Based on Sexual 

Orientation and Gender Identity 

The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs 

(OFCCP) enforces Executive Order 11246, as amended, 

which prohibits federal contractors and subcontractors 

from discriminating against employees and job applicants 

based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

1. How does OFCCP define sexual orientation 

and gender identity? 

“Sexual orientation” refers to an individual’s 

physical, romantic, and/or emotional attraction 

to people of the same and/or opposite gender. 

Examples of sexual orientations include straight (or 

heterosexual), lesbian, gay, and bisexual. 

The term “gender identity” refers to one’s internal 

sense of one’s own gender. It may or may not 

correspond to the sex assigned to a person at birth, 

and may or may not be made visible to others. 

2. What is discrimination based on sexual 

orientation and gender identity? 

Employment discrimination generally exists where 

an employer treats you, as an employee or job 

applicant, less favorably because of your sexual 

orientation or gender identity. Discrimination 

may also exist where an employer’s seemingly fair 

policies or procedures have a significant negative 

impact on employees or job applicants because of 

their sexual orientation or gender identity. 

3. What are my rights?

You have the right to work in an environment free

of discrimination, including harassment, based 

on your sexual orientation or gender identity. You 

cannot be harassed, demoted, terminated, paid 

less, denied employment, or otherwise treated 

less favorably because of your sexual 

orientation or gender identity. Among 

other things, contractors CANNOT: 

• Ask employees or job applicants for 

any information or identification 

that they do not ask for from all other 

employees or job applicants, including 

medical information related to their 

gender identity; 

• Refuse employees and job applicants t

he ability to use restrooms consistent 

with their gender identity;

• Harass employees and job applicants 

because of their sexual orientation or 

gender identity; 

• Deny lawfully married same-sex spouses 

the same benefits they provide to oppositesex spouses; or

• Deny same-sex partners in civil unions or 

domestic partnerships the same benefits 

they provide to heterosexual partners in 

such relationships.

4. Who does OFCCP protect? 

OFCCP protects the rights of employees and job 

applicants of companies doing business with the 

Federal Government. This includes employees 

at banks, information technology firms, meat 

packing plants, retail stores, manufacturing plants, 

accounting firms, and construction companies, 

among others. 

5

You can file a complaint with OFCCP if you think 

you have been discriminated against at work or when 

applying for work. You do not need to know with 

certainty that your employer is a federal contractor or 

subcontractor in order to file a complaint. 

200 CONSTITUTION AVENUE NW | WASHINGTON, DC 20210 | tel: 1-800-397-6251 | TTY: 1-877-889-5627 | www.dol.gov/ofccp
6. How do I file a complaint with OFCCP?

You may file a discrimination complaint by:

• Completing and submitting a form online through 

OFCCP’s Web site; 

• Completing a form in person at an OFCCP office; or 

• Mailing, e-mailing, or faxing a completed form to 

the OFCCP regional office that covers the location 

where the alleged discrimination occurred.

The form is available online at http://www.dol.

gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/pdf/pdfstart.htm 

and in paper format at all OFCCP offices. To find 

the office nearest you, visit the online listing 

of OFCCP offices at http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/

contacts/ofnation2.htm. 

You must remember to sign your completed 

complaint form. If you fail to do so, OFCCP will 

still take your complaint but an OFCCP investigator 

will ask you to sign the form during a follow-up 

interview. Complaints alleging discrimination 

based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual 

orientation, gender identity, or national origin 

must be filed within 180 days from the date of the 

alleged discrimination, unless the time for filing is 

extended for good cause. The same 180-day time 

frame applies to complaints alleging discrimination 

for discussing, disclosing, or inquiring about pay.

7. Can my employer fire, demote, or treat me 

less favorably because I filed a complaint?

No. It is illegal for your employer to retaliate 

against you for filing a complaint or participating 

in an investigation. OFCCP’s regulations protect 

you from harassment, intimidation, threats, 

coercion, or retaliation for asserting your rights. 

8. Can I file a discrimination complaint with 

both OFCCP and the Equal Employment 

Opportunity Commission (EEOC)?

Yes, if you file with both OFCCP and EEOC, your 

complaint will be investigated by the appropriate 

agency. In some instances, OFCCP and EEOC may 

decide to work together to investigate your complaint. 

OFCCP generally keeps complaints filed against 

federal contractors that allege discrimination based 

on a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. 

OFCCP also generally keeps complaints filed against 

federal contractors where there appears to be a pattern 

of discrimination that affects a group of employees or 

applicants, and those that allege discrimination based 

on disability or protected veteran status. Generally, 

OFCCP keeps complaints filed against federal 

contractors that allege discrimination based on 

someone asking about, discussing, or disclosing pay. 

9. What will happen if there is a finding that I 

was a victim of employment discrimination? 

You may be entitled to a remedy that places you in the 

position you would have been in if the discrimination 

had never happened. You may be entitled to be 

hired, promoted, reinstated, or reassigned. You may 

also be entitled to receive back pay, front pay, a pay 

raise or some combination of these remedies. In 

addition, if OFCCP finds that the federal contractor 

or subcontractor discriminated, OFCCP could 

seek to have the company debarred or removed 

from consideration for future federal contracts or 

have the company’s current contracts or contract 

modifications cancelled. 

For more information:

the u.s. department of labor

Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs

200 Constitution Avenue, NW

Washington, D.C. 20210

1-800-397-6251

TTY: 1-877-889-5627

www.dol.gov/ofccp

Please note that this fact sheet provides general information. It is not 

intended to substitute for the actual law and regulations regarding the 

program described herein.

Revised September 2016

200 CONSTITUTION AVENUE NW | WASHINGTON, DC 20210 | tel: 1-800-397-6251 | TTY: 1-877-889-5627 | www.dol.gov/ofccp