Filing a Workplace Harassment Complaint in Massachusetts
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team - Massachusetts - Last updated September 15, 2026
Massachusetts answers the first question in this area, whether you must go to the state agency before you can sue, by counting employees. G.L. c. 151B, section 1(5) says the term employer "does not include any employer with fewer than six persons in his employ." At six or more employees, chapter 151B governs your harassment claim, and a timely complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination is a precondition to ever reaching court. Below six, chapter 151B does not reach your employer at all. That matters most for sexual harassment, because Massachusetts put a separate route in a different chapter. G.L. c. 214, section 1C gives a person the right to be free from sexual harassment as defined in chapter 151B and chapter 151C, gives the Superior Court jurisdiction to enforce it, and then adds a proviso: "No claim under this section that is also actionable under chapter 151B or chapter 151C shall be brought in superior court unless a complaint was timely filed with the Massachusetts commission against discrimination under said chapter 151B." Read against the six-person floor, the proviso bites when the employer has six or more employees and does not bite when it has fewer. This is not a case of a threshold dropping to one inside the fair employment statute. The small-employer claim lives in a different chapter, in a different court, on a different clock, and it covers sexual harassment only. It is worth confirming with a Massachusetts employment lawyer how that route applies to your own facts before you rely on it. The chapter 151B deadline is 300 days. G.L. c. 151B, section 5 says any complaint "must be so filed within 300 days after the alleged act of discrimination." That matches the federal maximum and is the least distinctive thing about Massachusetts. What is distinctive is that the rules deciding whether a late complaint survives are not in the statute at all. They are in the Commission's own rules of procedure at 804 CMR 1.04(4), which supply a discovery rule, a continuing violation rule, mediation tolling and equitable tolling. If what you are facing includes physical assault, threats, or stalking, contact emergency services and speak with an attorney rather than starting with a complaint form. Attorney review is available if you want a second set of eyes before you file.
Find out where you stand in Massachusetts
Where are you with the harassment complaint?
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How long do I have to file a workplace harassment complaint in Massachusetts?
Three hundred days at the agency. G.L. c. 151B, section 5 says any complaint filed under that section must be filed within 300 days after the alleged act of discrimination, and 804 CMR 1.04(3) repeats the period in the Commission's own rules. The separate deadline for the civil action is three years after the alleged unlawful practice occurred, under G.L. c. 151B, section 9. The federal EEOC charge deadline runs on its own clock of 180 days, extended to 300 days where a state or local agency enforces a law prohibiting the same discrimination.
Do I have to file with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination before I can sue?
If your employer has six or more employees, yes. G.L. c. 151B, section 9 allows the civil action only at the expiration of 90 days after the filing of a complaint with the commission, or sooner if a commissioner assents in writing, and in no event later than three years after the alleged unlawful practice occurred. There is no right-to-sue letter to wait for. If your employer has fewer than six employees, chapter 151B does not apply to it at all, which changes the analysis entirely.
My Massachusetts employer has fewer than six employees. Do I have a claim?
For sexual harassment, the statutes point to a different route. G.L. c. 151B, section 1(5) excludes any employer with fewer than six persons in its employ, so the fair employment chapter does not reach that employer. G.L. c. 214, section 1C gives a separate right to be free from sexual harassment enforceable in Superior Court, and its requirement of a prior agency complaint is limited to a claim that is also actionable under chapter 151B or chapter 151C. Confirm with a Massachusetts employment lawyer how that route applies to your facts before relying on it.
Whether you have to go to the state commission at all is decided by a headcount, and the answer changes the deadline you are working to.
At six or more employees, Massachusetts is an exhaustion state. G.L. c. 151B, section 9 lets you bring a civil action in superior or probate court "at the expiration of ninety days after the filing of a complaint with the commission, or sooner if a commissioner assents in writing, but not later than three years after the alleged unlawful practice occurred." There is no EEOC-style right-to-sue letter. You file with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, wait the 90 days, withdraw the complaint, and then sue.
Relevant Laws
G.L. c. 151B, section 1(5): Six Employees Decides Whether the Chapter Applies
The term employer does not include any employer with fewer than six persons in its employ, nor a club exclusively social or a non-profit fraternal association or corporation. The definition does reach the Commonwealth and its political subdivisions, and employers of domestic workers under G.L. c. 149, section 190.
804 CMR 1.04(4)(e): The Commission's Rules Carry a Discovery Rule
The deadline for filing a complaint begins at the time the complainant knew or should have known about the allegedly unlawful conduct. This rule is in the agency's rules of procedure rather than in chapter 151B, so confirm the current text of the rule before relying on it.
804 CMR 1.04(4)(b): Continuing Violations Can Reach Back
Where facts indicate the unlawful conduct is continuing and part of an ongoing pattern, the complaint may include actions outside the statutory filing period so long as the last discriminatory act in the pattern occurred within that period.
G.L. c. 214, section 1C: Superior Court Route for Sexual Harassment
A person has the right to be free from sexual harassment as defined in chapters 151B and 151C, enforceable in Superior Court with the damages and relief in the third paragraph of section 9 of chapter 151B. The requirement of a prior timely MCAD complaint applies only to a claim also actionable under chapter 151B or chapter 151C.
G.L. c. 151B, section 3A: Written Policy Required, Training Only Encouraged
Every employer shall adopt a policy against sexual harassment with six prescribed contents and provide an individual written copy annually, and to each new employee at hire. Training is encouraged rather than required, and under section 3A(d) neither failure to provide the policy nor compliance with it decides liability by itself.
Regional Variances
How Massachusetts differs
Below six employees, chapter 151B does not apply, and
Below six employees, chapter 151B does not apply, and for sexual harassment that changes the route rather than ending it. G.L. c. 214, section 1C creates a standalone right enforceable in Superior Court, with damages and relief as provided in the third paragraph of section 9 of chapter 151B, and its proviso requiring a prior Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination complaint applies only to a claim "that is also actionable under chapter 151B or chapter 151C." A claim against an employer too small for chapter 151B is not actionable under it. This reading comes from the statutory text, and how a court applies it to your facts is worth confirming with a Massachusetts employment lawyer.
The small-employer route covers sexual harassment and nothing else.
The small-employer route covers sexual harassment and nothing else. G.L. c. 214, section 1C is written as a right to be free from sexual harassment as defined in chapter 151B and chapter 151C. It creates no parallel route for racial, religious, national origin, disability or age harassment, which means a worker at a four-person Massachusetts employer facing racial harassment has no state claim under either chapter and no federal claim under Title VII, which needs 15 employees. That is a hard finding rather than a gap in this guide.
The Massachusetts agency deadline is 300 days, and the
The Massachusetts agency deadline is 300 days, and the trigger is not what the statute makes it look like. G.L. c. 151B, section 5 runs the 300 days from "the alleged act of discrimination," and 804 CMR 1.04(3) restates it as 300 days after the alleged unlawful conduct. But 804 CMR 1.04(4)(e) provides that "the deadline for filing a complaint begins at the time the complainant knew or should have known about the allegedly unlawful conduct." A discovery rule of that kind is unusual, it lives in the agency rules rather than the statute, and you should check the current text of the rule before relying on it.
Suggested Compliance Checklist
G.L. c. 214, section 1C: Superior Court Route for Sexual Harassment
See your deadline days after startingA person has the right to be free from sexual harassment as defined in chapters 151B and 151C, enforceable in Superior Court with the damages and relief in the third paragraph of section 9 of chapter 151B. The requirement of a prior timely MCAD complaint applies only to a claim also actionable under chapter 151B or chapter 151C.
804 CMR 1.04(12): Withdraw the Agency Complaint Before You File Suit
See your deadline days after startingWithdrawal within the first 90 days is discretionary with the Investigating Commissioner; after 90 days it is of right on written notice. Under subsection (12)(d) the Commission may deem a complaint withdrawn as of the date of a court filing made without withdrawing first.
G.L. c. 151B, section 5: The 20-Day Election of Judicial Determination
See your deadline days after startingAt the probable cause stage either party may elect judicial determination in writing within 20 days of notice. That dismisses the agency complaint without prejudice and bars the complainant from re-filing at the Commission on the same matter.
G.L. c. 151B, section 3A: Written Policy Required, Training Only Encouraged
See your deadline days after startingEvery employer shall adopt a policy against sexual harassment with six prescribed contents and provide an individual written copy annually, and to each new employee at hire. Training is encouraged rather than required, and under section 3A(d) neither failure to provide the policy nor compliance with it decides liability by itself.
| Task | Description | Document | Days after starting |
|---|---|---|---|
| G.L. c. 214, section 1C: Superior Court Route for Sexual Harassment | A person has the right to be free from sexual harassment as defined in chapters 151B and 151C, enforceable in Superior Court with the damages and relief in the third paragraph of section 9 of chapter 151B. The requirement of a prior timely MCAD complaint applies only to a claim also actionable under chapter 151B or chapter 151C. | - | See your deadline |
| 804 CMR 1.04(12): Withdraw the Agency Complaint Before You File Suit | Withdrawal within the first 90 days is discretionary with the Investigating Commissioner; after 90 days it is of right on written notice. Under subsection (12)(d) the Commission may deem a complaint withdrawn as of the date of a court filing made without withdrawing first. | - | See your deadline |
| G.L. c. 151B, section 5: The 20-Day Election of Judicial Determination | At the probable cause stage either party may elect judicial determination in writing within 20 days of notice. That dismisses the agency complaint without prejudice and bars the complainant from re-filing at the Commission on the same matter. | - | See your deadline |
| G.L. c. 151B, section 3A: Written Policy Required, Training Only Encouraged | Every employer shall adopt a policy against sexual harassment with six prescribed contents and provide an individual written copy annually, and to each new employee at hire. Training is encouraged rather than required, and under section 3A(d) neither failure to provide the policy nor compliance with it decides liability by itself. | - | See your deadline |
Frequently Asked Questions
No. G.L. c. 214, section 1C is written as a right to be free from sexual harassment as defined in chapter 151B and chapter 151C, and it creates no equivalent for harassment based on race, color, religious creed, national origin, ancestry, disability, age or veteran status. Below the six-employee floor in G.L. c. 151B, section 1(5), those claims have no route under either chapter, and federal Title VII needs 15 employees. Speak to a Massachusetts employment lawyer about whether any other theory is available to you.
The statute and the rule point at different events, and the rule is more generous. G.L. c. 151B, section 5 keys the 300 days to the alleged act of discrimination, and 804 CMR 1.04(3) to the alleged unlawful conduct, but 804 CMR 1.04(4)(e) states that the deadline for filing a complaint begins at the time the complainant knew or should have known about the allegedly unlawful conduct. Because that rule lives in the Commission's rules of procedure rather than the statute, check the current version of 804 CMR 1.04 before you rely on it, and do not assume the same rule applies to the three-year court deadline.
The Commission's rules allow it in a continuing violation case. 804 CMR 1.04(4)(b) provides that when facts are alleged which indicate unlawful conduct is of a continuing nature and part of an ongoing pattern of discrimination, the complaint may include actions outside of the statutory filing period so long as the last discriminatory act in the pattern occurred within the statutory filing period. Keep a dated log of every incident, including the earliest ones, because the pattern is what the rule turns on.
No, but it does have to give you a policy. G.L. c. 151B, section 3A(e) says employers and labor organizations are encouraged to conduct an education and training program within one year of the commencement of employment, and encouraged is not required. Section 3A(b) is mandatory: every employer shall adopt a policy against sexual harassment covering six prescribed subjects and shall provide annually to all employees an individual written copy, with new employees getting one at the time of employment. Under section 3A(c) the Commission publishes a model policy and poster.
Not by itself. G.L. c. 151B, section 3A(d) provides that an employer's failure to provide the required policy does not by itself result in liability, and equally that compliance with the policy and notice requirements does not by itself insulate an employer from liability. It is still worth recording whether you ever received a policy, when, and what internal complaint route it described, because that record is part of the story of what you reported and to whom.
You need to withdraw it, and the order of steps matters. 804 CMR 1.04(12) makes withdrawal discretionary with the Investigating Commissioner within the first 90 days and available of right on written notice after 90 days, and 804 CMR 1.04(12)(d) lets the Commission deem a complaint withdrawn as of the date of a court filing made without withdrawing first. Separately, G.L. c. 151B, section 5 allows either party at the probable cause stage to elect judicial determination in writing within 20 days of notice, which dismisses the agency complaint without prejudice and bars the complainant from re-filing at the Commission on the same matter.
G.L. c. 151B, section 1(5) covers employers with six or more persons in their employ, against the 15 employees federal Title VII requires, so a worker at a six to fourteen person Massachusetts employer can have a full state claim and no federal one. The definition expressly reaches the Commonwealth and all its political subdivisions, and it pulls in employers of domestic workers through the cross-reference to G.L. c. 149, section 190. It excludes a club exclusively social, and a fraternal association or corporation, where that organization is not organized for private profit.
Other Massachusetts guides
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