Minnesota Workplace Harassment Laws: 1-Employee Rule, 1-Year Deadline

Workplace harassment is a form of unlawful discrimination under the Minnesota Human Rights Act: since a 2024 amendment, the Act's definition of "discriminate" includes "harassment" (Minn. Stat. § 363A.03, subd. 13), and § 363A.08, subd. 2 makes it an unfair employment practice for an employer to discriminate in the "terms, upgrading, conditions, facilities, or privileges of employment" because of a protected trait. The Act covers any employer with one or more employees (§ 363A.03, subd. 16), subject to exemptions in §§ 363A.20 and 363A.26, and a claim must be brought in court or with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights within one year (§ 363A.28, subd. 3).

Sexual harassment has its own statutory definition, which includes conduct that creates "an intimidating, hostile, or offensive" employment environment (§ 363A.03, subd. 43). The Minnesota Supreme Court reads that definition through the "severe or pervasive" test (Kenneh v. Homeward Bound, Inc., 2020). For how other states compare, see workplace harassment laws by state.

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

Jurisdiction scope: This article covers Minnesota state law on workplace harassment by employers, supervisors and coworkers under the Minnesota Human Rights Act, Minn. Stat. ch. 363A (chiefly §§ 363A.02, 363A.03, 363A.08, 363A.14, 363A.15, 363A.28 and 363A.33), plus Minn. Stat. §§ 181.141 and 609.748. It does not cover wrongful firing or the full charge and lawsuit procedure (see Minnesota wrongful termination), damages estimates, criminal harassment or stalking, harassment outside employment, federal-employee procedure, or city ordinances.

Minnesota harassment rules at a glance

What the Minnesota Human Rights Act prohibits

The operative ban is § 363A.08, subd. 2. Except when based on a bona fide occupational qualification, it is an unfair employment practice for an employer, because of a protected trait, to refuse to hire, to discharge an employee, or to:

"(3) discriminate against a person with respect to hiring, tenure, compensation, terms, upgrading, conditions, facilities, or privileges of employment." (Minn. Stat. § 363A.08, subd. 2)

Section 363A.08 does not use the word harassment. Harassment reaches the ban through the definition of "discriminate," which a 2024 law (2024 Minn. Laws ch. 105) rewrote to read:

"The term "discriminate" includes segregate, separate, or harassment." (Minn. Stat. § 363A.03, subd. 13)

Before that amendment, the definition covered sexual harassment only, for purposes of sex discrimination. Now harassment because of race, religion, disability, age or any other protected trait falls inside the same definition. The Act does not define the word "harassment" for those other traits; its only harassment definition is the one for sexual harassment.

The sexual harassment definition

Section 363A.03, subd. 43 applies to the whole chapter. In employment, sexual harassment "includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, sexually motivated physical contact or other verbal or physical conduct or communication of a sexual nature" when one of three conditions is met:

• submission to the conduct "is made a term or condition, either explicitly or implicitly, of obtaining employment";
• submission to or rejection of the conduct "is used as a factor in decisions affecting that individual's employment"; or
• the conduct "has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual's employment ... or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive employment ... environment."

The first two describe what is often called quid pro quo harassment. The third is the hostile-environment prong.

Which Minnesota employers are covered

"Employer" means "a person who has one or more employees" (§ 363A.03, subd. 16). That single definition applies to every employment claim under the Act, so a one-person business is covered for harassment on any protected trait, not only for sexual harassment, unless an exemption in § 363A.20 or § 363A.26 applies.

Section 363A.20, subd. 1 provides that § 363A.08 does not apply to the employment of an individual by the individual's parent, grandparent, spouse, child or grandchild, or in the domestic service of any person. Section 363A.26 separately exempts nonprofit religious associations from the chapter for employment actions, except for secular business activities unrelated to their religious and educational purposes.

"Employee" means "an individual who is employed by an employer and who resides or works in this state," and it includes a commission salesperson, as defined in § 181.145, who resides or works in Minnesota (§ 363A.03, subd. 15). Chapter 363A contains no provision that expressly extends its employment protections to independent contractors, volunteers or unpaid interns.

Separately, § 363A.17(3) makes it an unfair discriminatory practice for a person engaged in a trade or business to intentionally discriminate in the basic terms, conditions or performance of a contract because of a person's race, national origin, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation or disability, unless the discrimination is because of a legitimate business purpose; that section is not limited to employees.

For comparison, the federal Title VII definition of employer requires "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)), so many small Minnesota employers are covered by state law alone.

Protected traits under Minnesota law

Section 363A.08, subd. 2 lists these traits for employment:

• race and color
• creed and religion
• national origin
• sex
• gender identity
• sexual orientation
• marital status
• familial status
• status with regard to public assistance
• membership or activity in a local commission
• disability
• age

Three definitions shape that list:

• Age: the employment age prohibition protects a person "over the age of majority" (§ 363A.03, subd. 2).

• Sex "includes, but is not limited to, pregnancy, childbirth, and disabilities related to pregnancy or childbirth" (§ 363A.03, subd. 42).

• Race "is inclusive of traits associated with race, including but not limited to hair texture and hair styles such as braids, locs, and twists" (§ 363A.03, subd. 36a, added in 2023).

The legal standard: severe or pervasive

The statute's hostile-environment prong speaks of conduct "substantially interfering" with employment or creating an "intimidating, hostile, or offensive" environment. The Minnesota Supreme Court applies that language through a "severe or pervasive" test. In Kenneh v. Homeward Bound, Inc., No. A18-0174 (Minn. June 3, 2020), the court stated:

"Alleged conduct is sufficiently severe or pervasive to state a claim for sexual harassment under the Minnesota Human Rights Act if a reasonable person, considering the totality of the circumstances, would find the alleged behavior objectively abusive or offensive."

The court added that "[a] single, severe incident may support a claim for relief." Kenneh concerned sexual harassment. The 2024 amendment that brought harassment on all protected bases into the definition of "discriminate" did not state a standard for those other bases.

Employer responsibility and individual liability

The Human Rights Act's employment ban in § 363A.08 runs against "an employer." The statute does not set out a separate employer-liability rule for harassment by a supervisor, a coworker or a non-employee. In Kenneh, where the alleged harasser was the organization's maintenance coordinator rather than the complainant's supervisor, the Minnesota Supreme Court held that the employee's assertions created a genuine issue of material fact on whether the employer "knew or should have known" about his behavior and "failed to take appropriate remedial action." The opinion did not decide the rule for harassment by a supervisor.

Two sections reach individuals:

• Aiding and abetting: it is an unfair discriminatory practice "for any person: (1) intentionally to aid, abet, incite, compel, or coerce a person to engage in any of the practices forbidden by this chapter," or intentionally to attempt to do so (§ 363A.14).
• Reprisal: the reprisal ban in § 363A.15 applies to "any individual who participated in the alleged discrimination as a perpetrator," as well as to the employer.

Retaliation for complaining

Under § 363A.15, it is an unfair discriminatory practice to intentionally engage in any reprisal against a person because that person "opposed a practice forbidden under this chapter or has filed a charge, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this chapter." The section states that "[a] reprisal includes, but is not limited to, any form of intimidation, retaliation, or harassment."

How a firing after a complaint fits with Minnesota's default employment rule is covered on the Minnesota at-will employment page.

Deadlines and where to file

Minnesota sets one deadline for all three routes:

• One year: "A claim of an unfair discriminatory practice must be brought as a civil action pursuant to section 363A.33, subdivision 1, filed in a charge with a local commission pursuant to section 363A.07, subdivision 3, or filed in a charge with the commissioner within one year after the occurrence of the practice" (§ 363A.28, subd. 3(a)). There is no separate deadline for harassment.
• Pause for voluntary dispute resolution: the one-year period "is suspended during the time a potential charging party and respondent are voluntarily engaged in a dispute resolution process," including arbitration, conciliation, mediation or grievance procedures under a collective bargaining agreement or a civil service or other employment system (§ 363A.28, subd. 3(b)).
• Direct lawsuit: "The commissioner or a person may bring a civil action seeking redress for an unfair discriminatory practice directly to district court" (§ 363A.33, subd. 1). A charge with the Department of Human Rights is not a required first step.
• EEOC filing: the Minnesota Department of Human Rights states: "Beginning October 1, 2025, Minnesotans who believe they were discriminated against in the workplace and would like to also preserve any rights they may have under federal law, must separately and independently file with the EEOC." The two agencies "no longer automatically cross-files charges of discrimination with the other agency."
• Federal charge period: the EEOC states that its "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." The EEOC's Minneapolis Area Office states that in Minnesota a charge against an employer with 15 or more employees (20 or more for age) may be filed with the EEOC within 300 days from the date of alleged harm.

The later steps, including the 90-day windows after an MDHR dismissal or after notice of intent to sue in § 363A.33, are explained on the Minnesota wrongful termination page, which also covers remedies. The Minnesota employment discrimination settlement calculator is an estimating tool, not a prediction of any outcome.

Training and written policies

The Minnesota Human Rights Act contains no requirement that private employers provide harassment training, adopt a written harassment policy or post a harassment notice.

NDAs, settlements and arbitration

Minn. Stat. § 181.141, added in 2023, addresses how a settlement is paid, not what it may keep confidential:

"In a sexual harassment or abuse settlement between an employer and an employee, when there is a financial settlement provided, the financial settlement cannot be provided as wages or severance pay to the employee regardless of whether the settlement includes a nondisclosure agreement."

Neither § 181.141 nor chapter 363A voids a nondisclosure term or sets rules on arbitration of harassment claims. 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 explained on the workplace harassment laws hub.

Is workplace bullying illegal in Minnesota?

The Human Rights Act reaches harassment because of the traits it lists. It contains no provision on general workplace bullying that is unconnected to one of those traits.

A separate civil route exists outside employment law. Under Minn. Stat. § 609.748, subd. 2(a), "[a] person who is a victim of harassment or the victim's guardian or conservator may seek a restraining order from the district court." That section uses its own definition of harassment, which is not tied to protected traits, and it is a court order against the person, not a discrimination claim against an employer.

Documenting harassment and workplace monitoring

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

Recent changes to Minnesota harassment law

• 2020: Kenneh v. Homeward Bound held that sexual harassment under the Act is judged by whether a reasonable person, considering the totality of the circumstances, would find the conduct objectively abusive or offensive, and that a single, severe incident may support a claim.
• 2023: 2023 Minn. Laws ch. 3 added § 363A.03, subd. 36a, defining race to include hair texture and hair styles such as braids, locs and twists.
• 2023: 2023 Minn. Laws ch. 64, art. 1, § 11 added § 181.141 on how sexual harassment and abuse settlements may be paid.
• 2024: 2024 Minn. Laws ch. 105 amended § 363A.03, subd. 13 so that "discriminate" includes harassment on every protected basis, not only sexual harassment.
• October 1, 2025: the Department of Human Rights and the EEOC stopped automatically cross-filing charges.

Related pages

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

This article provides general legal information about Minnesota workplace harassment law under the Minnesota Human Rights Act, Minn. Stat. ch. 363A, as of 2026-10-20. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in Minnesota or the Minnesota Department of Human Rights.

Last updated: 2026-10-20.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is workplace harassment illegal in Minnesota?

The Minnesota Human Rights Act defines 'discriminate' to include harassment (Minn. Stat. § 363A.03, subd. 13), and § 363A.08, subd. 2 makes discrimination in the terms, conditions or privileges of employment because of a protected trait an unfair employment practice.

Does Minnesota harassment law apply to small employers?

Yes. Under § 363A.03, subd. 16, an employer is a person who has one or more employees, and that definition applies to harassment on every protected trait. Section 363A.20, subd. 1 excludes employment by a parent, grandparent, spouse, child or grandchild and domestic service, and § 363A.26 exempts nonprofit religious associations for employment actions outside secular business activities.

How long do I have to file a harassment claim in Minnesota?

A claim must be brought in district court, with a local commission or with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights within one year after the practice occurs (§ 363A.28, subd. 3(a)). The period is suspended while both sides voluntarily take part in a qualifying dispute resolution process.

Does a Minnesota Department of Human Rights charge also count with the EEOC?

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights states that the two agencies no longer automatically cross-file charges and that, beginning October 1, 2025, a worker who wants to preserve federal rights must file separately and independently with the EEOC.

What is the standard for a hostile work environment in Minnesota?

In Kenneh v. Homeward Bound (2020), the Minnesota Supreme Court held that conduct is sufficiently severe or pervasive for a sexual harassment claim if a reasonable person, considering the totality of the circumstances, would find it objectively abusive or offensive, and that a single, severe incident may support a claim.

Can a coworker or supervisor be personally liable under the Minnesota Human Rights Act?

Section 363A.14 makes it an unfair discriminatory practice for any person to intentionally aid, abet, incite, compel or coerce a forbidden practice, and § 363A.15 applies the reprisal ban to any individual who participated in the alleged discrimination as a perpetrator.

Does Minnesota require sexual harassment training?

The Minnesota Human Rights Act contains no harassment training, written-policy or poster requirement for private employers.

Can a Minnesota harassment settlement include an NDA?

Chapter 363A and § 181.141 contain no rule voiding nondisclosure terms. Section 181.141 provides that a financial settlement of a sexual harassment or abuse claim cannot be paid as wages or severance pay, whether or not the settlement includes a nondisclosure agreement.