Georgia Workplace Harassment Laws: No Private-Sector State Statute

Georgia has no state statute that makes workplace harassment an unlawful employment practice for private employers. The Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act (O.C.G.A. 45-19-20 et seq.) sounds general, but it covers only employment by state government: its "public employer" is "any department, board, bureau, commission, authority, or other agency of the state which employs 15 or more employees" for the required number of weeks (O.C.G.A. 45-19-22(6)). A private-sector employee in Georgia brings a harassment claim under federal law, chiefly Title VII.

Federal law, the 300-day charge deadline that the EEOC's Atlanta office states for Georgia and the federal hostile-environment standard are explained on the workplace harassment laws by state hub. This page covers what Georgia's own statutes do and do not do.

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

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Georgia state law on workplace harassment: the Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act, O.C.G.A. 45-19-20 et seq. (chiefly 45-19-22, 45-19-28, 45-19-29, 45-19-36, 45-19-38, 45-19-39 and 45-19-44), the Title 34 statutes on disability, age and equal pay that reach some private employers, and Title 34, Chapter 5A (county and city government workplaces). It does not cover wrongful firing or the full charge and lawsuit procedure (see Georgia wrongful termination), damages estimates, criminal harassment or stalking, harassment outside employment, local ordinances, or federal-employee procedure.

Georgia harassment rules at a glance

Why Georgia has no private-sector harassment statute

Georgia's main employment discrimination law is written for state government. After the 2024 amendments in H.B. 563, the Act's definitions read:

"(6) 'Public employer' or 'employer' means any department, board, bureau, commission, authority, or other agency of the state which employs 15 or more employees within the state for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year. ... (7) 'Public employment' means employment by any department, board, bureau, commission, authority, or other agency of the State of Georgia." (O.C.G.A. 45-19-22(6)-(7), as amended by 2024 H.B. 563)

The agency that enforces the Act describes the same scope. The Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity's Equal Employment Division "enforces the Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act by investigating claims of unlawful discrimination made by those seeking employment within State of Georgia government or those that believe they have been discriminated against as an employee within State of Georgia government."

A private business, whatever its size, is outside both definitions. Georgia's Title 34 contains narrower statutes on disability, age and equal pay (below), but none of them uses the word harassment.

Private employees: federal law is the main route

For a private-sector worker in Georgia, the harassment rules that apply are federal. Title VII defines a covered employer as one 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)). The EEOC's Atlanta District Office states: "In the State of Georgia, an individual has 300 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. An individual has 300 days from the date of alleged harm to file a charge with this office against an employer with 20 or more employees for discrimination based on age."

The federal standard for a hostile work environment, employer liability and the federal remedies are covered on the workplace harassment laws hub. A Georgia statute does not set its own standard for private employers.

What the Fair Employment Practices Act prohibits for state employees

The Act has no clause that uses the word harassment. Its general unlawful practice, in O.C.G.A. 45-19-29, reads:

"It is an unlawful practice for an employer: (1) To fail or refuse to hire, to discharge, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to the individual's compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of such individual's race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability, or age;" (O.C.G.A. 45-19-29(1))

Because "employer" in that section means a state agency, the clause protects state government employees and applicants.

Protected traits

The Act lists race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability and age. Its age provisions "apply only to individuals who are at least 40 years of age but less than 70 years of age" (O.C.G.A. 45-19-28).

The Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity reads "sex" to include sexual orientation. Its employment FAQ states: "Yes. Based on the United States Supreme Court's ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County, the Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act (FEPA) prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. When filing a complaint with the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity (GCEO), the basis of sex includes sexual orientation."

Georgia statutes that reach some private employers

Three Title 34 statutes cover private employment on narrow grounds. None of them uses the word harassment.

• Disability: Georgia's disability employment code defines an employer as "a person or governmental unit or officer in this state having in his, her, or its employ 15 or more individuals or any person acting as an agent of an employer" (O.C.G.A. 34-6A-2(2)). Code Section 34-6A-4 bars such an employer from discriminating against an individual with disabilities "with respect to wages, rates of pay, hours, or other terms and conditions of employment because of such person's disability unless such disability restricts that individual's ability to engage in the particular job or occupation for which he or she is eligible"; the section does not use the word harassment. An individual with disabilities "who is aggrieved by an unfair employment practice against such individual may institute a civil action against the persons engaged in such prohibited conduct," and the action "shall be brought within 180 days after the alleged prohibited conduct occurred" (O.C.G.A. 34-6A-6(a)).
• Age: Georgia's age discrimination statute, O.C.G.A. 34-1-2, is enforced as a crime: a violator is "guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine of not less than $100.00 nor more than $250.00" (O.C.G.A. 34-1-2(b)).
• Equal pay: the sex-based wage statute makes it unlawful "for any person to discharge or in any other manner discriminate against any employee covered by this chapter because such employee has made a complaint to his employer or any other person or has instituted or caused to be instituted any proceeding under or related to this chapter or has testified or is about to testify in any such proceedings" (O.C.G.A. 34-5-3(c)). It addresses wages and retaliation tied to wage complaints.

Retaliation and individual liability

Within state government employment, O.C.G.A. 45-19-44(a) makes it "an unlawful practice for a person willfully to" retaliate or discriminate against a person "because the person has opposed a practice declared unlawful by this article" or because the person "has made a charge, filed a complaint, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in any investigation, proceeding, or hearing concerning an unlawful practice under this article," or to "Aid, abet, incite, compel, or coerce a person to engage in any of the acts or practices declared unlawful by this article" (O.C.G.A. 45-19-44(a)(2)-(3)). Those clauses are written to apply to "a person," and they are limited to practices declared unlawful by the Act. The Act contains no provision on harassment claims against individual private-sector supervisors or coworkers. A firing after a complaint, and how it fits with Georgia's default employment rule, is covered on the Georgia at-will employment and Georgia wrongful termination pages.

County and city employees

Title 34, Chapter 5A, added in 2022, gives "Any individual working for a county, municipality, or consolidated government as an employee or in a similar capacity" a cause of action for retaliation against that government if it "has discharged, suspended, demoted, or taken any other adverse action against the individual in the terms or conditions of the work relationship because the individual has" opposed sexual harassment, made a report or charge or filed a complaint related to sexual harassment, or taken part in, provided information for or testified in an investigation, proceeding, hearing or action related to sexual harassment (O.C.G.A. 34-5A-2(a)). Code Section 34-5A-1 defines sexual harassment for that chapter. The chapter applies to county, municipal and consolidated governments, not to private employers.

Deadlines and where to file

State government employees and applicants file with the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity.

• Complaint deadline: under O.C.G.A. 45-19-36(b), "The complaint shall be barred unless filed within 180 days after the alleged unlawful practice occurs." The commission's FAQ adds: "You must submit a written, sworn complaint of discrimination within one hundred eighty (180) days from the date of the alleged unlawful employment practice for this agency to investigate your claim."
• Dismissal and reconsideration: "Within ten days after receiving a copy of the order dismissing the complaint, the complainant may file with the administrator an application for reconsideration of the order" (O.C.G.A. 45-19-36(e)). If the administrator again finds no reasonable cause, the order notifies the complainant of the right "to request a right to bring an action letter from the appropriate federal agency or petition for review in the appropriate superior court as provided for in Code Section 45-19-39."
• What the agency can order: remedial action may include hiring, reinstatement or upgrading "with or without back pay," but no back pay award may cover "any period more than two years prior to the date of the filing with the administrator of the complaint," and "Any monetary award ordered pursuant to this article shall be for actual damages only" (O.C.G.A. 45-19-38(c)-(d)).

Private-sector harassment charges go to the EEOC. Its Atlanta District Office states a 300-day deadline in Georgia for employers with 15 or more employees (20 or more for age claims), as quoted above.

The steps between a charge and a lawsuit, right-to-sue letters and remedies are covered on the Georgia wrongful termination page. The Georgia employment discrimination settlement calculator is an estimating tool, not a prediction of any outcome.

Training and written policies

The Fair Employment Practices Act and the Title 34 statutes covered on this page contain no provision requiring harassment training or a written anti-harassment policy.

For state Executive Branch agencies (not the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia, the Legislative Branch or the Judicial Branch), a statewide Sexual Harassment Prevention Policy issued under Executive Order 01.14.19.02, effective March 1, 2019, requires agencies to have covered employees, "including part-time, temporary, seasonal employees, and contractors who are regularly on Agency premises and/or regularly interact with Agency personnel," complete sexual harassment prevention training every fiscal year, and to train new or transferred covered employees within 30 calendar days of hire. Supervisors and managers train annually, and new supervisors and managers within 30 calendar days of employment or promotion. It is an executive policy, not a statute.

NDAs, confidentiality and arbitration

None of the Georgia employment statutes covered on this page limits nondisclosure, confidentiality or arbitration terms in harassment agreements or settlements. Federal law adds limits for sexual harassment disputes: the Speak Out Act makes nondisclosure and nondisparagement clauses agreed to before a sexual harassment dispute arises judicially unenforceable where the conduct is alleged to violate federal, tribal or state law, and the Ending Forced Arbitration Act lets the person alleging sexual harassment elect court over a predispute arbitration agreement; both are explained on the workplace harassment laws hub.

Is workplace bullying illegal in Georgia?

The Fair Employment Practices Act reaches discrimination because of the race, color, religion, national origin, sex, disability or age of a state government employee or applicant. It contains no provision on general workplace bullying that is not tied to one of those traits.

Documenting harassment and workplace monitoring

The rules on recording a conversation at work, including a conversation with a harasser, are on the Georgia workplace recording laws page. Employer monitoring of email, devices and workspaces is covered on the Georgia employee monitoring laws page.

Recent changes to Georgia law

• 2024: H.B. 563 amended the Fair Employment Practices Act. It renumbered the definitions in O.C.G.A. 45-19-22, so the employer definition is now paragraph (6) and the public employment definition paragraph (7), added a definition of "hearing officer," and re-lettered O.C.G.A. 45-19-36 so the reconsideration step is now subsection (e). The Act's state-government scope and the 180-day complaint deadline did not change.

• 2022: H.B. 1390 added Chapter 5A to Title 34, creating a retaliation cause of action for county, municipal and consolidated-government workers who oppose or report sexual harassment.

Related pages

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

This article provides general legal information about Georgia workplace harassment law under the Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act and related Title 34 statutes as of 2026-10-20. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Georgia, the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity (state government employment) or the EEOC.

Last updated: 2026-10-20.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is workplace harassment illegal in Georgia?

Georgia has no state statute that makes harassment an unlawful employment practice for private employers. The Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act covers state government employment, and private-sector harassment claims are brought under federal law such as Title VII, which reaches employers with 15 or more employees. Georgia's disability employment code, O.C.G.A. 34-6A-4, bars employers of 15 or more from discriminating in terms and conditions of employment because of disability, unless the disability restricts the individual's ability to engage in the particular job, but it does not use the word harassment, and a civil action under O.C.G.A. 34-6A-6 must be brought within 180 days.

Does the Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act apply to private employers?

No. O.C.G.A. 45-19-22(6) defines a public employer as a state department, board, bureau, commission, authority or other state agency with 15 or more employees for each working day in 20 or more calendar weeks, and the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity describes its work as covering employment within State of Georgia government.

How long do you have to file a harassment complaint in Georgia?

A state government employee's written, sworn complaint to the Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity is barred unless filed within 180 days after the alleged unlawful practice (O.C.G.A. 45-19-36(b)). For employers with 15 or more employees, the EEOC's Atlanta District Office states that an individual in Georgia has 300 days from the date of alleged harm to file a federal charge (20 or more employees for age).

Is sexual orientation covered by Georgia's Fair Employment Practices Act?

The Georgia Commission on Equal Opportunity states that, based on Bostock v. Clayton County, the Act prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, and that the basis of sex includes sexual orientation when a complaint is filed with the commission. The Act covers state government employment only.

Does Georgia require sexual harassment training for employers?

The Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act, which covers state government employment, and the Title 34 statutes covered on this page contain no training or written-policy provision. For state Executive Branch agencies, a statewide Sexual Harassment Prevention Policy issued under Executive Order 01.14.19.02, effective March 1, 2019, requires sexual harassment prevention training every fiscal year and for new or transferred employees within 30 calendar days of hire; it is an executive policy, not a statute, and it does not apply to the Board of Regents, the Legislative Branch or the Judicial Branch.

Can a Georgia employer make an employee sign an NDA about harassment?

None of the Georgia employment statutes covered on this page limits nondisclosure or confidentiality terms. The federal Speak Out Act and Ending Forced Arbitration Act limit predispute nondisclosure clauses and arbitration agreements in sexual harassment disputes; the workplace harassment laws hub explains both.

Is workplace bullying illegal in Georgia?

The Georgia Fair Employment Practices Act reaches discrimination in state government employment because of the traits it lists. It contains no provision on general workplace bullying that is not tied to one of those traits.