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Landmark acts that spawned U.S. Federal employment discrimination laws (statutes ) enforced by the EEOC are listed below.

States and municipalities are allowed to enact their own employment discrimination laws that include or expand the provisions in the Federal laws. For example, some states make it unlawful for employers to discriminate based on sexual orientation, smoking or weight, in addition to the discriminations that the Federal laws prohibit. Some states and municipalities refer to their employment discrimination laws as fair employment practices laws, and they are typically enforced by local equal employment opportunity offices or civil rights agencies. To research employment discrimination laws in your state, start with the links in State Labor and Employment Law .

Employment discrimination laws do not apply to independent contractors. That's because genuine independent contractors are self-employed. As such, they are not employees, at least according to labor laws. However, if an employer has misclassified employees as independent contractors, then employment discrimination laws might retroactively apply after a government agency or court makes a misclassification determination.

Prohibits employment age discrimination against individuals who are at least forty, but less than sixty-five years old.

Title I and V prohibit employment discrimination against qualified individuals who have disabilities, because of their disabilities.

Title VII prohibits discrimination in compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

Civil Rights Act of 1991