Alabama Workplace Harassment Laws: No State Statute, Federal Route

Alabama has no state law that prohibits workplace harassment by private employers. Its private-sector discrimination statutes are narrow: the Alabama Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Ala. Code 25-1-20 to 25-1-29, protects workers 40 years of age and over at employers with 20 or more employees, and the Clarke-Figures Equal Pay Act, Ala. Code 25-1-30, bars unequal pay for equal work because of sex or race. Harassment because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin or disability is addressed through federal law, chiefly Title VII.

For the federal rules and a comparison of every state, see workplace harassment laws by state. This page covers what Alabama's own statutes contain and what they leave to federal law.

Information last verified on 2026-10-20. This article has not been reviewed by a licensed lawyer.

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Alabama state law on workplace harassment by private employers: Chapter 1 of Title 25 of the Alabama Code, chiefly the age discrimination article (25-1-20 to 25-1-29) and the Clarke-Figures Equal Pay Act (25-1-30), plus Ala. Code 21-7-8 (disability, publicly funded employment), the 2026 sex-abuse nondisclosure statute (6-5-861) and a note on the criminal harassment statute (13A-11-8). It does not cover wrongful firing or the full charge and lawsuit procedure (see Alabama wrongful termination), damages estimates, state-government personnel rules, local ordinances, tort claims under general Alabama law, harassment outside employment, or federal-employee procedure.

Alabama harassment rules at a glance

What Alabama's employment code contains

Chapter 1 of Title 25 of the Alabama Code ("General Provisions") is where a state fair-employment law would sit. Its articles are:

• Article 1, In General (25-1-1 to 25-1-4)
• Article 2, Equal Employment Opportunity for Minorities (25-1-10), which is an affirmative-action definition
• Article 3, Age Discrimination by Employers Prohibited (25-1-20 to 25-1-29)
• Article 3A, the Clarke-Figures Equal Pay Act (25-1-30)
• Article 4, Use of Consumer Reporting Agencies (25-1-40)
• Article 5, Voluntary Veterans' Preference Employment Policy Act (25-1-50 to 25-1-52)
• Article 5A, Employment Preference for Veterans, Spouses of Veterans, and Active Duty Service Members (25-1-55, effective January 1, 2027)
• Article 6, Family Leave (25-1-60 to 25-1-61)
• Article 7, Portable Benefits Act (25-1-70 to 25-1-72)

None of those articles prohibits harassment or defines a hostile work environment. The Clarke-Figures Equal Pay Act concerns pay: an employer, "including the state or any of its political subdivisions," "may not pay any of its employees at wage rates less than the rates paid to employees of another sex or race for equal work" in the same establishment, subject to listed exceptions (Ala. Code 25-1-30(b)), and a civil action "may be commenced no later than two years after the act of discrimination" (25-1-30(h)). It is not a harassment statute.

Outside Title 25, Ala. Code 21-7-8 provides that "an employer may not refuse employment to an individual with a disability on the basis of his or her disability alone," in a sentence limited to state and local government service, the public schools and "all other employment supported in whole or in part by public funds." It is a hiring rule, not a harassment provision.

The age discrimination article

The broadest Alabama statute that regulates private employers on a protected trait is the age article. Its core rule reads:

"No employer, employment agency, or labor organization shall discriminate in employment against a worker 40 years of age and over in hiring, job retention, compensation, or other terms or conditions of employment." (Ala. Code 25-1-21)

It applies to an employer defined as "Any person employing 20 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, including any agent of that person" (Ala. Code 25-1-20(2)). The article does not use the word harassment.

The article also bars retaliation against an individual who "has opposed any practice which is an unlawful employment practice under this article, or because that individual has made a charge, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this article" (Ala. Code 25-1-28). That protection is limited to age claims under the article.

Filing an age claim. Section 25-1-29 lets a person choose the forum:

"Any person aggrieved may elect to pursue their remedies under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act 29 U.S.C. Section 621 or in the alternative bring a civil action in the circuit court of the county in which the person was or is employed for such legal or equitable relief as will effectuate the purposes of this article. ... the remedies, defenses, and statutes of limitations, under this article shall be the same as those authorized by the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act except that a plaintiff shall not be required to pursue any administrative action or remedy prior to filing suit under this article." (Ala. Code 25-1-29)

The article names no state agency. Its duties run to the employer, employment agency and labor organization, it protects "a worker 40 years of age and over," and it contains no provision on claims against individual supervisors or coworkers or on contractors, volunteers or interns.

Private employees: federal law is the route

For harassment because of race, color, religion, sex or national origin, the rules that apply to a private Alabama workplace are federal. Title VII reaches an employer with "fifteen or more employees for each working day in each of twenty or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year" (42 U.S.C. 2000e(b)). Under the EEOC's general rule, "you need to file a charge within 180 calendar days from the day the discrimination took place," and "The 180 calendar day filing deadline is extended to 300 calendar days if a state or local agency enforces a law that prohibits employment discrimination on the same basis." Alabama's age article names no state enforcement agency, and Chapter 1 of Title 25 sets up no agency for harassment complaints. The EEOC's Birmingham District Office states: "In the State of Alabama, an individual has 180 days from the date of alleged harm to file a charge with this office against an employer with 15 or more employees for discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, religion, and/or disability." The same office gives 180 days for age charges against employers with 20 or more employees.

The federal hostile-environment standard, employer liability, the federal limits on harassment NDAs and arbitration, and federal damages caps are explained on the workplace harassment laws hub. Charge-to-lawsuit steps and remedies are covered on the Alabama wrongful termination page, and the Alabama employment discrimination settlement calculator is an estimating tool, not a prediction of any outcome.

Training, policies, NDAs and arbitration

The Alabama Code sections covered on this page contain no requirement that a private employer train employees on harassment or adopt or post a harassment policy, and no limit on mandatory-arbitration terms for harassment claims.

A 2026 law limits some confidentiality terms. Under Ala. Code 6-5-861 (Act 2026-63), "Any provision of a nondisclosure agreement, confidentiality agreement, employment agreement, settlement agreement, or any other type of agreement that prohibits an individual or entity from disclosing an act of sexual abuse or facts related to an act of sexual abuse to another individual or entity is void and unenforceable" (6-5-861(b)(1)). "sexual abuse" there means conduct that would be a crime under listed articles of Title 13A, Chapter 6, including the sexual-offense article, or an offense listed in Ala. Code 15-20A-5, "regardless of whether the conduct has led to a criminal charge, conviction, adjudication, or sentence" (6-5-861(a)). The rule applies to agreements entered into, executed or amended on or after October 1, 2026, and only to the parts of an agreement related to the act of sexual abuse, not to other terms such as compensation (6-5-861(b)(2)). Harassment that would not be one of those offenses is outside its definition.

Federal law sets its own limits for sexual harassment disputes, explained on the hub.

Is workplace bullying illegal in Alabama?

The employment statutes covered here contain no general workplace-bullying provision. Alabama's criminal code has a general harassment offense: a person commits harassment if, "with intent to harass, annoy, or alarm another person," he or she "Strikes, shoves, kicks, or otherwise touches a person or subjects him or her to physical contact," or "Directs abusive or obscene language or makes an obscene gesture towards another person," and the offense is a Class C misdemeanor (Ala. Code 13A-11-8). It is a criminal statute that applies anywhere, not an employment law.

Documenting harassment and workplace monitoring

The rules on recording a conversation at work, including a conversation with a harasser, are on the Alabama workplace recording laws page. A firing after a complaint, and Alabama's default employment rule, are covered on the Alabama at-will employment page.

Related pages

• Workplace harassment laws by state
• Alabama wrongful termination
• Alabama at-will employment laws
• Alabama employee monitoring laws
• Alabama workplace recording laws

This article provides general legal information about Alabama workplace harassment law under the Alabama Code as of 2026-10-20. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Alabama or the EEOC.

Last updated: 2026-10-20.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is workplace harassment illegal in Alabama?

Alabama has no state statute that prohibits workplace harassment by private employers. Apart from equal pay for equal work regardless of sex or race (Ala. Code 25-1-30) and a disability hiring rule limited to public and publicly funded employment (21-7-8), it has no statute on private-employer discrimination because of race, color, sex, religion, national origin or disability. Private-sector harassment claims are brought under federal law, chiefly Title VII, which covers employers with 15 or more employees.

Does Alabama have any employment discrimination law?

Alabama's private-sector discrimination statute is the Alabama Age Discrimination in Employment Act, Ala. Code 25-1-20 to 25-1-29. It protects workers 40 years of age and over against discrimination in hiring, job retention, compensation, or other terms or conditions of employment, and it covers employers with 20 or more employees (25-1-20(2), 25-1-21). The Clarke-Figures Equal Pay Act (25-1-30) also bars paying employees less than employees of another sex or race for equal work.

Where do you file a harassment complaint in Alabama?

Alabama has no state fair-employment agency for harassment complaints. Federal charges go to the EEOC; its Birmingham District Office states that in Alabama a charge is due within 180 days from the date of alleged harm. A claim under Alabama's age article may be filed directly in the circuit court of the county of employment without any administrative step (25-1-29).

Does Alabama require sexual harassment training for employers?

The Alabama Code sections covered on this page contain no harassment-training or written-policy requirement for private employers.

Can an Alabama employer make me sign an NDA about sexual harassment?

Alabama has no harassment-specific NDA statute. Under Ala. Code 6-5-861, a provision of an employment, settlement or other agreement that prohibits disclosing an act of sexual abuse, meaning conduct that would be a crime under listed articles of the criminal code, charged or not, is void and unenforceable. It applies to agreements entered into, executed or amended on or after October 1, 2026, and only to the parts related to the act of sexual abuse.

Is workplace bullying illegal in Alabama?

The Alabama employment statutes covered on this page contain no general workplace-bullying provision. Alabama's criminal harassment statute, Ala. Code 13A-11-8, is a general criminal law, not an employment law.