EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY PROJECT

Susan E. Huhta, EEO Project Director
Warren K. Kaplan, EEO Staff Attorney
Candice D. Jones, EEO Staff Attorney

Roberto Gonzalez, Visting Attorney
Lucy Panza, EEO Paralegal

Discrimination Cases

The Washington Lawyers' Committee's Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Project seeks to eradicate employment discrimination based on race, gender, national origin, disability, age, religion, sexual orientation, and other bases prohibited under federal and local laws. For over thirty-five years, the EEO Project has filled a critical need for quality legal representation in hundreds of employment discrimination cases.  The EEO Project is also committed to full enforcement of wage and hour laws, as well as family and medical leave laws.  The EEO Project and the volunteer lawyers who co-counsel our cases have won, or successfully settled, lawsuits against government agencies and private entities throughout the region. More than 300 cases, including over 60 class actions, have produced nearly $100 million in court awards and settlements and opened employment opportunities for thousands of African Americans, women, and other protected individuals. The Project also assists civil rights plaintiffs nationwide by filing amicus (friend of the court) briefs on EEO legal issues on which the Washington Lawyers' Committee has expertise.

The EEO Project responds to requests for pro bono legal assistance in claims of employment discrimination and employment-related claims.  If you live in the D.C. metropolitan area and believe that you have been discriminated against in an employment matter, please complete our intake questionnaire online or print the questionnaire, complete it, and mail it to: Washington Lawyers' Committee, 11 Dupont Circle NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20036, Attn: EEO Project.  You may also contact the EEO Project at 202-319-1000 x 224. 

To find out whether you are eligible to participate in a pending EEO case, see group lawsuits and class actions.

Day Laborer Cases

(Para una descripción en español, por favor consulte la página web de Derechos de los Inmigrantes y Refugiados.)

In addition to handling EEO cases, the EEO Project has launched a new Day Laborer Initiative in coordination with the Committee's Immigration and Refugee Rights Project to help ensure the enforcement of federal and local wage and hour laws in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.  This Initiative was developed in response to increasing reports of area employers' exploitation of day laborers who, due to language barriers, immigration status, and other obstacles, frequently lack knowledge of their rights and access to the systems designed to protect them.  Through the pursuit of all available remedies under relevant wage and hour laws and the mobilization of the pro bono legal community, the Initiative aims not only to vindicate the rights of individuals but also to create a significant deterrent to employers' exploitation of one of the area's most vulnerable populations.  In addition to litigating cases, the Day Laborer Initiative is collaborating with other local organizations and community groups to assist in the establishment of formal day laborer centers and to ensure language access to government agencies. 

If you live in Maryland, Washington, D.C., or Virginia and believe that you have not received proper payment for the time you have worked, please call our EEO Project intake number and leave a message for our Intake Assistant at 202-319-1000 x 224. 

Si cree que no ha recibido el pago adecuado por las horas que ha trabajado, por favor, llame nuestro número y deje un mensaje a 202-319-1000 x 224. 

Opportunities to Volunteer Legal Assistance

If you are a D.C.-area attorney interested in learning more about the EEO Project, or in volunteering for the Washington Lawyers' Committee, please call 202-319-1000 ext. 124.

Online Resources