Wyoming Department of Workforce Services Labor Standards Office — Charge of Discrimination (WFEPA / EEOC Dual-File)

CHARGE OF DISCRIMINATION

Wyoming Department of Workforce Services

Labor Standards Office — Wyoming Fair Employment Program

(Request EEOC cross-filing where available)

A. CHARGING PARTY (COMPLAINANT)

B. RESPONDENT (EMPLOYER OR ENTITY CHARGED)

C. BASIS OF DISCRIMINATION

I believe I was discriminated against because of (check all that apply):

Wyoming Fair Employment Practices Act (W.S. § 27-9-105(a)) bases:

• ☐ Race
• ☐ Color
• ☐ Creed (Religion)
• ☐ Sex
• ☐ Pregnancy
• ☐ Age (40 or older)
• ☐ National Origin
• ☐ Ancestry
• ☐ Disability

Federal bases (assert only where the federal statute covers the claim and EEOC filing is timely):

• ☐ Sexual Orientation (Title VII per Bostock v. Clayton County, 590 U.S. 644 (2020))
• ☐ Gender Identity (Title VII per Bostock)
• ☐ Genetic Information (GINA, 42 U.S.C. § 2000ff)
• ☐ Retaliation for opposing unlawful practices or filing/participating in a charge or proceeding

D. DATE(S) DISCRIMINATION TOOK PLACE

E. PARTICULARS — STATEMENT OF DISCRIMINATION

I, [CHARGING PARTY NAME], allege the following:

E.1. I am a member of the protected class(es) checked in Section C above. Specifically, [describe — e.g., "I am African American," "I am 56 years old," "I am pregnant," "I have a disability (specify)"].

E.2. I began my employment with Respondent [RESPONDENT NAME] on [__/__/____] as a [JOB TITLE]. At all relevant times, I performed my job duties competently and met or exceeded Respondent's legitimate expectations, as reflected in [performance reviews / commendations / promotions].

E.3. Beginning on or about [__/__/____], I was subjected to the following discriminatory conduct:

• [Adverse action 1 — date, decisionmaker, action taken (e.g., termination, demotion, pay cut, denial of promotion, denial of accommodation, harassment)];
• [Adverse action 2 — date, decisionmaker, action];
• [Specific harassment incident — date, location, actors, statements, witnesses];
• [Pattern of differential treatment — names of comparators outside the protected class who were treated more favorably].

E.4. On [__/__/____], I reported the discrimination/harassment to [HR / supervisor / hotline / EEO officer] and engaged in protected activity by [describe internal complaint, EEOC charge, accommodation request, etc.].

E.5. Following my protected activity, Respondent [describe retaliatory conduct — termination, schedule change, write-up, isolation, demotion, pay cut] on or about [__/__/____].

E.6. Similarly situated employees outside my protected class(es) were treated more favorably. Specifically, [name comparator(s); describe their characteristics, performance, and treatment].

E.7. Respondent's stated reasons for the adverse actions are pretextual because [describe inconsistencies, shifting rationales, deviations from policy, temporal proximity, statistical patterns, or direct evidence of bias].

E.8. As a direct and proximate result of Respondent's discriminatory conduct, I have suffered [lost wages, benefits, emotional distress, humiliation, professional reputation harm].

I believe I have been discriminated against in violation of the Wyoming Fair Employment Practices Act, W.S. § 27-9-101 et seq., and [as applicable: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, GINA, and/or 42 U.S.C. § 1981].

F. RELIEF REQUESTED

I request that the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services investigate this charge and, if a fair hearing results in a finding of a discriminatory or unfair employment practice, issue and enforce the hearing officer's decision under W.S. § 27-9-106(k), (m), and (n), including any supported relief below:

• ☐ Cease-and-desist order against further discriminatory practices
• ☐ Hiring, retaining, reinstating, or upgrading
• ☐ Back pay or front pay
• ☐ Posting of notices regarding employees' rights under WFEPA
• ☐ Required reporting on Respondent's compliance
• ☐ Other relief the hearing officer deems necessary and appropriate to make me whole: [____________]

If the current Wyoming-EEOC agency arrangements permit it, I request transmission and filing of this charge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for any applicable federal claim. I will confirm with EEOC whether and when the federal charge was filed.

G. DUAL-FILING ELECTION

If current Labor Standards Office and EEOC instructions or an agency-specific agreement permit cross-filing of this covered claim, I request EEOC cross-filing and processing under the applicable 29 C.F.R. § 1601.13 procedures.

• ☐ I want this charge dual-filed with EEOC.
• ☐ I do NOT want this charge dual-filed with EEOC.

I understand that asking for cross-filing does not itself extend a federal deadline. The EEOC generally applies a 180-day charge period; a 300-day period depends on a qualifying state or local agency enforcing a law against discrimination on the same basis. For age claims, the longer period requires a state age-discrimination law and an enforcing state agency. If a Title VII right-to-sue notice is issued, the civil-action deadline under 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-5(f)(1) must be calendared separately.

H. PRIOR PROCEEDINGS

I. VERIFICATION (NOTARIZED)

I, [CHARGING PARTY NAME], being first duly sworn, depose and state under penalty of perjury that I have read the foregoing Charge of Discrimination, that I am the Charging Party herein, and that the statements contained in this Charge are true and correct to the best of my knowledge, information, and belief.

Date: [__/__/____]

[________________________________]

[CHARGING PARTY SIGNATURE]

Printed Name: [CHARGING PARTY PRINTED NAME]

STATE OF WYOMING

COUNTY OF [________________]

Subscribed and sworn to before me this [___] day of [MONTH], [YEAR], by [CHARGING PARTY NAME].

[________________________________]

Notary Public

My Commission Expires: [__/__/____]

(Notary Seal)

J. FILING INSTRUCTIONS

Submit this verified Charge of Discrimination, in duplicate, to the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services Labor Standards Office:

K. WYOMING PRACTICE NOTES

• 6-month state filing deadline (W.S. § 27-9-106(a)). The verified, written complaint must be filed in duplicate within six (6) months of the alleged unlawful practice. Calendar the applicable federal deadline separately for each basis; do not assume 300 days from an EEOC cross-filing request.
• No state right-to-sue letter requirement. WFEPA does not condition any subsequent action on issuance of a right-to-sue letter parallel to Title VII. The administrative process culminates in an agency determination, optional fair hearing under the Wyoming APA, and judicial review by petition under W.R.A.P. 12.
• WFEPA protected classes (W.S. § 27-9-105(a)). Age (40+), sex, race, creed (religion), color, national origin, ancestry, pregnancy, and disability. Wyoming does not enumerate sexual orientation or gender identity. Analyze federal coverage and timely EEOC filing separately for those bases.
• Employer threshold. WFEPA covers employers with 2+ employees (W.S. § 27-9-102). Title VII / ADA require 15+; ADEA requires 20+.
• Hearing-officer relief (W.S. § 27-9-106(n)). Section 27-9-107 was repealed in 2001. Current § 27-9-106(n) permits cease-and-desist relief; specified remedial action including hiring, retaining, reinstating, or upgrading; notices and compliance reports; other relief necessary and appropriate to make the complainant whole; and back pay or front pay. It does not enumerate emotional-distress or punitive damages.
• EEOC filing and deferral. Section 1601.13 supplies federal filing and FEPA-deferral mechanics and contemplates separate agreements; it is not itself a Wyoming-EEOC agreement. Request cross-filing where current agency instructions permit, and confirm coverage, agency jurisdiction over the alleged basis, actual EEOC filing, and the federal deadline.
• Wyoming Governmental Claims Act. If Respondent is a Wyoming governmental entity, comply with the WGCA's notice-of-claim requirements (W.S. § 1-39-101 et seq.; Allen v. Lucero, 925 P.2d 622 (Wyo. 1996)) BEFORE filing any related civil action. The administrative charge with the Labor Standards Office is not a substitute for WGCA notice for tort or non-discrimination claims.
• Public accommodations and housing. WFEPA covers employment only. For public accommodations claims, see W.S. § 6-9-101 (criminal misdemeanor; no civil private right of action) or federal 42 U.S.C. § 2000a / ADA Title III. For housing, see W.S. § 40-26-101 et seq. (Wyoming Fair Housing Act), administered by the same agency.
• Federal lawsuit window. Apply each selected federal statute's current civil-action route. Analyze any § 1981 race-contract claim separately from the Title VII charge process; under Jones v. R.R. Donnelley, § 1658 supplies four years only when a post-1990 enactment made the claim possible.

L. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• W.S. § 27-9-101 et seq. (Wyoming Fair Employment Practices Act) — https://wyoleg.gov/statutes/compress/title27.pdf
• W.S. § 27-9-105 — https://law.justia.com/codes/wyoming/title-27/chapter-9/section-27-9-105/
• W.S. § 27-9-106 (6-month filing deadline)
• W.S. § 27-9-106(k), (m), and (n) (fair hearing, department order, and hearing-officer relief)
• W.S. § 16-3-101 et seq. (Wyoming Administrative Procedure Act)
• W.S. § 1-39-101 et seq. (Wyoming Governmental Claims Act)
• W.S. § 40-26-101 et seq. (Wyoming Fair Housing Act)
• Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, Labor Standards Office — https://dws.wyo.gov/dws-division/labor-standards/
• EEOC — https://www.eeoc.gov/
• 29 C.F.R. § 1601.13 (EEOC filing and FEPA deferral; agency agreements separate)
• Bostock v. Clayton County, 590 U.S. 644 (2020)
• Allen v. Lucero, 925 P.2d 622 (Wyo. 1996)
• 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. (Title VII)
• 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. (ADA)
• 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq. (ADEA)

Disclaimer: This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. W.S. § 27-9-106(a) requires a Wyoming complaint within six months of the alleged practice; federal charge periods depend on the governing statute and same-basis agency coverage. WFEPA does not enumerate sexual orientation or gender identity. Its hearing-officer remedy list does not specify emotional-distress or punitive damages. An attorney licensed in Wyoming should review this charge before submission.