Filing a Workplace Harassment Complaint in Texas
Reviewed by DocDraft Legal Team - Texas - Last updated September 15, 2026
In Texas, filing with the state agency is not optional if you want to sue under state law. Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code makes a complaint to the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division the entry point: you file there first, the commission tells you in writing how your complaint ended, and only then can you ask for the notice that lets you file a civil action. No section of Chapter 21 uses the word "exhaustion," so you will not find that label in the statute, but the structure works that way in practice. Then comes the part most guides get wrong. Since September 1, 2021, Texas has split its harassment law in two. A sexual harassment complaint must be filed not later than the 300th day after the date the harassment occurred, and it can be brought against an employer with as few as one employee. Every other kind of harassment, including harassment because of race, religion, national origin, age, or disability, must be filed not later than the 180th day after the date the practice occurred, and only against an employer with 15 or more employees. A page that tells you "180 days in Texas" without that split can tell a sexual harassment complainant at day 200 that a live claim is dead. Coverage is the second lever, and for many readers it matters more than the deadline. Someone harassed at a three-person Texas company has no federal Title VII claim and no Chapter 21 race harassment claim, because both need 15 employees. That same person may still have a Chapter 21 sexual harassment claim, because the 2021 subchapter reaches an employer with one employee. The federal route runs alongside all of this: the EEOC's own charge deadline is 180 days from the act, extended to 300 days in states that have a fair employment practice agency, and Texas is designated as one by Texas Labor Code Section 301.153(b). Confirm your federal window with the EEOC directly, and do not let a state deadline run out while you check.
Find out where you stand in Texas
Where are you with the harassment complaint?
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How long do I have to file a workplace harassment complaint in Texas?
It depends on the kind of harassment. A complaint alleging sexual harassment must be filed not later than the 300th day after the date the alleged sexual harassment occurred, under Texas Labor Code Section 21.202(a-1). Every other harassment complaint, including harassment because of race, color, religion, national origin, age, or disability, must be filed not later than the 180th day after the date the alleged unlawful employment practice occurred, under Section 21.202(a). Both clocks run from the date of the act itself.
Why is the Texas deadline different for sexual harassment?
Because the Legislature changed it. Effective September 1, 2021, H.B. 21 added Section 21.202(a-1), which set a separate 300-day deadline for complaints alleging sexual harassment while leaving the general 180-day rule in Section 21.202(a) in place. Many published guides still give a flat 180 days for Texas, which is the old answer for sexual harassment and would put a live claim on the wrong side of the line.
Do I have to file with a state agency before I can sue in Texas?
For a claim under Chapter 21, yes in practical terms. Sections 21.201 and 21.202 make the complaint to the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division the entry point, Section 21.252 lets you request a right-to-sue notice only after you receive the outcome notice described in Section 21.208, and Section 21.254 starts the suit clock from your receipt of that notice. Chapter 21 does not use the word "exhaustion" anywhere, but that is how the sequence works, and a Texas employment lawyer can tell you how it applies to your facts.
Texas runs two different clocks and two different employer-size rules, and using the wrong pair can end a claim that is still alive.
Texas Labor Code Sections 21.201 and 21.202 put your complaint with the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division first, before any state court case. Section 21.252 then conditions your right-to-sue notice on having received the commission's outcome notice under Section 21.208. Chapter 21 never uses the word "exhaustion," but that is the sequence the statute builds, and skipping the agency step puts a state-law suit at risk.
Relevant Laws
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.202(a-1): 300-Day Sexual Harassment Deadline
A complaint alleging sexual harassment must be filed not later than the 300th day after the date the alleged sexual harassment occurred. This deadline took effect September 1, 2021 and applies only to sexual harassment complaints.
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.202(a): 180-Day Deadline for Other Harassment
Every complaint other than sexual harassment must be filed not later than the 180th day after the date the alleged unlawful employment practice occurred. The clock runs from the act itself, not from discovery or from the end of employment.
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.141(1): One-Employee Coverage for Sexual Harassment
For sexual harassment, employer means a person who employs one or more employees, or who acts directly in the interests of an employer in relation to an employee. Confirm the size of your employer before assuming no state claim exists.
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.002(8): 15-Employee Threshold for Other Claims
Non-sexual harassment claims require an employer with 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year. Counties, municipalities, state agencies, and state instrumentalities are covered regardless of the number of individuals employed.
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.051: Bases Covered by Texas Harassment Law
Texas covers harassment because of race, color, disability, religion, sex, national origin, or age, and adds no protected class beyond federal law. Sex includes pregnancy, childbirth, and related medical conditions under Section 21.106(a).
Regional Variances
How Texas differs
Section 21.202(a-1) requires a complaint alleging sexual harassment to
Section 21.202(a-1) requires a complaint alleging sexual harassment to be filed not later than the 300th day after the date the alleged sexual harassment occurred. Section 21.202(a) keeps every other complaint at not later than the 180th day after the date the alleged unlawful employment practice occurred. Both deadlines run from the act itself, not from when you discovered it, not from when you were fired, and not from any notice. This split took effect September 1, 2021.
For sexual harassment, Section 21.141(1) defines an employer as
For sexual harassment, Section 21.141(1) defines an employer as a person who employs one or more employees, or who acts directly in the interests of an employer in relation to an employee. For all other harassment, Section 21.002(8) requires 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year. A worker at a small Texas employer can therefore have a sexual harassment claim and no other harassment claim under the same chapter.
Section 21.202(b) says the commission shall dismiss an untimely
Section 21.202(b) says the commission shall dismiss an untimely complaint. That is mandatory language, not a matter of discretion. Section 21.201(g) contemplates that a complaint may still be in the process of being perfected after the deadline, so getting a written complaint on file early leaves room to cure a technical defect. An amendment curing a defect relates back to the date the complaint was first received under Section 21.201(e) and (f).
Suggested Compliance Checklist
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.208: Wait for the Commission's Written Outcome Notice
See your deadline days after startingIf the commission dismisses the complaint or does not resolve it before the 181st day after filing, it must inform the complainant in writing by certified mail. Keep the envelope and the date, because later deadlines are measured from this notice.
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.252: Request a Right-to-Sue Notice in Writing
See your deadline days after startingA complainant who receives the Section 21.208 notice is entitled to request a written notice of the right to file a civil action. Failure by the commission to issue that notice does not by itself take away the right to bring a civil action.
Tex. Lab. Code Sections 21.254 and 21.256: Sue Within 60 Days, Subject to a Two-Year Bar
See your deadline days after startingA civil action must be brought within 60 days after the right-to-sue notice is received, which is 30 days less than the federal window. No civil action may be brought later than the second anniversary of the date the complaint was filed.
Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.010: Training Duty Applies to State Agencies Only
See your deadline days after startingEach state agency must train its own employees on employment discrimination, including sexual harassment, within 30 days of hire and every two years after. No section of Chapter 21 requires a private Texas employer to provide harassment training.
| Task | Description | Document | Days after starting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.208: Wait for the Commission's Written Outcome Notice | If the commission dismisses the complaint or does not resolve it before the 181st day after filing, it must inform the complainant in writing by certified mail. Keep the envelope and the date, because later deadlines are measured from this notice. | - | See your deadline |
| Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.252: Request a Right-to-Sue Notice in Writing | A complainant who receives the Section 21.208 notice is entitled to request a written notice of the right to file a civil action. Failure by the commission to issue that notice does not by itself take away the right to bring a civil action. | - | See your deadline |
| Tex. Lab. Code Sections 21.254 and 21.256: Sue Within 60 Days, Subject to a Two-Year Bar | A civil action must be brought within 60 days after the right-to-sue notice is received, which is 30 days less than the federal window. No civil action may be brought later than the second anniversary of the date the complaint was filed. | - | See your deadline |
| Tex. Lab. Code Section 21.010: Training Duty Applies to State Agencies Only | Each state agency must train its own employees on employment discrimination, including sexual harassment, within 30 days of hire and every two years after. No section of Chapter 21 requires a private Texas employer to provide harassment training. | - | See your deadline |
Frequently Asked Questions
That depends on employer size and on the type of harassment. For sexual harassment, Section 21.141(1) reaches a person who employs one or more employees, or who acts directly in the interests of an employer in relation to an employee. For all other harassment, Section 21.002(8) requires 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, the same threshold federal Title VII uses. Counties, municipalities, state agencies, and state instrumentalities are covered regardless of size.
Section 21.202(b) says the commission shall dismiss an untimely complaint, so a late complaint does not simply get a harder look. Your federal option may still be open, because the EEOC's charge deadline is 180 days from the act and is extended to 300 days in states with a fair employment practice agency, and Texas is designated as one under Section 301.153(b). Check the federal window with the EEOC right away rather than assuming it, and speak to a lawyer promptly if any deadline has already passed.
Section 21.254 gives you 60 days after the date the notice of the right to file a civil action is received. That is shorter than the 90 days you get after a federal right-to-sue letter, and it is easy to lose track of. Section 21.256 adds a separate outer limit: no civil action later than the second anniversary of the date the complaint was filed, which runs from your filing date and not from the notice, so a long agency investigation can shorten the practical window.
Complaints go to the Civil Rights Division of the Texas Workforce Commission. The Texas Commission on Human Rights, or TCHR, no longer exists; Section 21.0015 transferred its powers and duties to the Texas Workforce Commission, which is why the statute and older forms still say "the commission." If you are looking at a form or a case that names the TCHR, it is referring to the body whose functions the Texas Workforce Commission now performs.
Chapter 21 does not list them. Section 21.051 covers race, color, disability, religion, sex, national origin, and age, and Section 21.001(1) states that the chapter exists to carry out the policies of Title VII, so it adds no protected class beyond federal law. Section 21.151 does allow a political subdivision to adopt and enforce an ordinance prohibiting a practice that is unlawful under the chapter or other law, so local rules can reach further. Whether a city or county ordinance covers your situation is a question for a lawyer familiar with that locality.
Not if it is a private employer. Section 21.010 applies to state agencies only: each state agency must provide an employment discrimination training program to its own employees, with attendance not later than the 30th day after hire and supplemental training every two years. Nothing in Chapter 21 imposes a training duty on private Texas employers, although many provide training voluntarily.
The Texas Workforce Commission's own guidance says harassment can involve verbal, physical, or visual conduct and can occur on or off the work site. That is the enforcing agency's interpretation rather than statutory text, and Chapter 21 itself says nothing about off-premises or electronic conduct. The same guidance keeps the federal threshold in place, stating that conduct must be unwelcome and either severe or pervasive to rise to the level of illegal harassment. Record where and how each incident happened and raise off-site conduct with a lawyer rather than assuming it is covered or excluded.
Other Texas guides
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