South Carolina Workplace Harassment Laws: 15 Employees, 180 Days

South Carolina reaches workplace harassment through its Human Affairs Law, which makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to discriminate against an individual "with respect to the individual's compensation or terms, conditions, or privileges of employment" because of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or disability (S.C. Code 1-13-80(A)(1)). The law applies to employers with 15 or more employees for each working day in 20 or more calendar weeks (S.C. Code 1-13-30(e)), with age claims limited to employers covered by the federal age law (S.C. Code 1-13-100), and Chapter 13 of Title 1 contains no separate harassment clause and no statutory hostile-environment standard.

The South Carolina Human Affairs Commission takes complaints, and its published guidance describes when harassment becomes illegal. For other states, 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 South Carolina state law on workplace harassment by employers, supervisors and coworkers under the South Carolina Human Affairs Law, S.C. Code Title 1, Chapter 13 (chiefly 1-13-30, 1-13-80, 1-13-90 and 1-13-100), and the Human Affairs Commission's published guidance. It does not cover wrongful firing or the full complaint and lawsuit procedure (see South Carolina wrongful termination), damages estimates, criminal harassment or stalking, harassment outside employment, or federal-employee procedure.

South Carolina harassment rules at a glance

What South Carolina law prohibits

The word "harass" does not appear in Chapter 13 of Title 1. A harassment claim under state law rests on the general unlawful-practice section:

"(A) It is an unlawful employment practice for an employer: (1) to fail or refuse to hire, bar, discharge from employment, or otherwise discriminate against an individual with respect to the individual's compensation or terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of the individual's race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin, or disability;" (S.C. Code 1-13-80(A)(1))

Because the statute does not define harassment, it does not distinguish quid pro quo harassment from a hostile work environment, and it sets no severity or frequency test. The Human Affairs Commission's guidance describes the line this way:

"Although the law does not prohibit simple teasing, offhand comments, or isolated incidents that are not very serious, harassment is illegal if it is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment or if it results in an adverse employment decision (such as the victim being fired or demoted)." (South Carolina Human Affairs Commission, Prohibited Practices and Discrimination Types)

That passage is agency guidance, not a statutory definition.

Which South Carolina employers are covered

Section 1-13-30(e) defines "Employer" as "any person who has fifteen or more employees for each working day in each of twenty or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and any agent of such a person," and excludes "an Indian tribe or a bona fide private membership club other than a labor organization." The same 15-employee definition applies to harassment and discrimination claims, but for age claims S.C. Code 1-13-100 provides that the chapter creates no cause of action "against a person not covered by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967," the federal age law. The EEOC office covering South Carolina describes age charges as filed "against an employer with 20 or more employees."

That threshold is worded the same way as Title VII's, which applies to 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)). The workplace harassment laws hub covers the federal layer.

Section 1-13-30(h) defines "Employee" as "an individual employed by an employer," except that the term does not include a person elected to public office in South Carolina, a person chosen by that officer for the officer's personal staff, or "an appointee on the policy-making level or an immediate adviser with respect to the exercise of the constitutional or legal powers of the office." The definition does not mention independent contractors, interns or volunteers.

Protected traits in South Carolina

Section 1-13-80(A)(1) lists race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin and disability. The definitions in 1-13-30 shape three of them:

• Age: "Age" means "at least forty years" (1-13-30(c)).
• National origin: "includes ancestry" (1-13-30(b)).
• Sex: "because of sex" or "on the basis of sex" include, but are not limited to, "because of or on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions, including, but not limited to, lactation" (1-13-30(l)).

The list in 1-13-80(A)(1) does not include sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, genetic information or hairstyle, and the chapter contains no hair-texture or protective-hairstyle provision. A 2025 bill on hair texture, bill 584 of the 126th session, was introduced in the Senate on April 16, 2025 and referred to the Committee on Judiciary; it is not law.

Federal law is separate: in Bostock v. Clayton County (2020), the U.S. Supreme Court held that an employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender violates Title VII, and how far that reaches harassment claims is contested; the workplace harassment laws hub explains the federal layer.

Who can harass, and who is responsible

The Commission's guidance states that "The harasser can be the victim's supervisor, a supervisor in another area, a co-worker, or someone who is not an employee of the employer, such as a client or customer." The statute itself does not set different employer-liability rules for supervisors, coworkers or non-employees.

On suing an individual, the definition of "Employer" includes "any agent of such a person" (1-13-30(e)), but the statute does not state in terms whether a supervisor or coworker can be held personally liable. Section 1-13-100 limits the causes of action the chapter creates:

"Nothing in this chapter may be construed to create a cause of action other than those specifically described in Section 1-13-90 of this chapter. Nothing in this chapter may be construed to create a cause of action against a person not covered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U. S. C. Section 2000e et seq., if the cause of action arises from discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Nothing in this chapter may be construed to create a cause of action against a person not covered by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, as amended, 29 U. S. C. Section 621 et seq., if the cause of action arises from discrimination on the basis of age. Nothing in this chapter may be construed to create a cause of action against a person not covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, Public Law 101-336." (S.C. Code 1-13-100)

Retaliation for complaining

Section 1-13-80(F) makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to discriminate against an employee or applicant "because the individual has opposed a practice made an unlawful employment practice by this chapter or because the individual has made a charge, testified, assisted, or participated in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this chapter." Firings after a complaint, and how they fit with South Carolina's default employment rule, are covered on the South Carolina at-will employment and South Carolina wrongful termination pages.

Deadlines and where to file

The South Carolina Human Affairs Commission accepts employment complaints under Chapter 13.

• Commission deadline: "Any person shall complain in writing under oath or affirmation to the Commission within one hundred eighty days after the alleged discriminatory practice occurred" (1-13-90(a)). The statute sets no separate harassment deadline.
• Harassment that continues over time: the Commission's timelines page states, "In harassment cases, you must file your charge within 180 or 300 days of the last incident of harassment, although we will look at all incidents of harassment when investigating your charge, even if the earlier incidents happened more than 180/300 days earlier."
• EEOC: the Commission states that a complaint is "dual filed with EEOC" on receipt, and that a person "may still file if more than 180 days have passed, but less than 300 days," in which case the complaint is transferred to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for processing.
• Circuit court (private employers and local governments, 1-13-90(d)): if the Commission dismisses the charge, or within 180 days of filing has neither filed an action nor entered a conciliation agreement to which the complainant is a party, the complainant may bring an action in equity in circuit court. Under 1-13-90(d)(6), "The action must be brought within one year from the date of the violation alleged, or within one hundred twenty days from the date the complainant's charge is dismissed, whichever occurs earlier, except that this period may be extended by written consent of the respondent." The 120-day window can close well before the one-year limit.
• State agencies: a complaint against a state agency or department follows 1-13-90(c) instead. After the Commission investigates, a supervisory commission member issues an order either of dismissal or for a hearing before a panel of three Commission members, "which order shall not be subject to judicial or other further review" (1-13-90(c)(5)). After a hearing, either party may appeal the decision of the Commission to the Administrative Law Court "within thirty days after receipt of notice" of the order (1-13-90(c)(19)).
• Federal suits: under 1-13-90(d)(8), "No action may be brought under this chapter if an action alleging essentially the same facts and seeking relief for the same complainant has been brought in any federal court," and a state action already filed "shall be promptly dismissed" if such a federal action is brought. A complainant also may not bring a state action once the Commission has brought an action based on the same charge.

Relief in a state court action is limited. Under 1-13-90(d)(9), a court that finds the respondent "intentionally engaged in" an unlawful employment practice may enjoin it and order affirmative action, reinstatement or hiring "with or without back pay," or other equitable relief, and "Back pay liability shall not accrue from a date more than two years prior to the filing of a charge with the Commission." The full procedure and remedies are on the South Carolina wrongful termination page, and the South Carolina employment discrimination settlement calculator is an estimating tool, not a prediction of any outcome.

Training and written policies

Chapter 13 of Title 1 does not require private employers to provide harassment training or to adopt an anti-harassment policy. The employer notice duty it does contain concerns pregnancy: an employer "shall provide written notice of the right to be free from discrimination for medical needs arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions" to new employees at the commencement of employment, and the notice "also must be conspicuously posted at an employer's place of business in an area accessible to employees" (1-13-80(A)(4), subsubitems (i) and (ii)).

NDAs, confidentiality and arbitration

Chapter 13 contains no provision limiting 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; the workplace harassment laws hub explains both.

Is workplace bullying illegal in South Carolina?

The Human Affairs Law reaches discrimination because of the traits listed in 1-13-80(A)(1). Chapter 13 contains no provision on general workplace bullying that is not tied to one of those traits, and the Commission's guidance notes that the law "does not prohibit simple teasing, offhand comments, or isolated incidents that are not very serious."

Documenting harassment and workplace monitoring

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

Related pages

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

This article provides general legal information about South Carolina workplace harassment law under the South Carolina Human Affairs Law, S.C. Code Title 1, Chapter 13, as of 2026-10-20. It is not legal advice. For advice about a specific situation, contact a lawyer licensed in South Carolina or the South Carolina Human Affairs Commission.

Last updated: 2026-10-20.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is workplace harassment illegal in South Carolina?

South Carolina's Human Affairs Law has no express harassment clause. Harassment is reached through S.C. Code 1-13-80(A)(1), which bars an employer with 15 or more employees from discriminating in the terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin, or disability. For age claims, S.C. Code 1-13-100 creates no cause of action against a person not covered by the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which the EEOC applies to employers with 20 or more employees.

What counts as a hostile work environment in South Carolina?

The statute does not define it. The South Carolina Human Affairs Commission's guidance states that harassment is illegal if it is so frequent or severe that it creates a hostile or offensive work environment or results in an adverse employment decision, and that simple teasing, offhand comments and isolated incidents that are not very serious are not prohibited.

Does South Carolina harassment law apply to small employers?

No. S.C. Code 1-13-30(e) defines an employer as a person with 15 or more employees for each working day in each of 20 or more calendar weeks in the current or preceding calendar year, and that threshold applies to harassment as well as discrimination. For age claims, S.C. Code 1-13-100 creates no cause of action against a person not covered by the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which the EEOC applies to employers with 20 or more employees.

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

A complaint to the Human Affairs Commission must be filed in writing under oath within 180 days after the alleged discriminatory practice (S.C. Code 1-13-90(a)). The Commission states that for harassment the charge must be filed within 180 or 300 days of the last incident, and that a complaint filed between 180 and 300 days is transferred to the EEOC.

Does South Carolina require sexual harassment training?

Chapter 13 of Title 1 does not require private employers to provide harassment training. Its employer notice duty concerns pregnancy-related rights under S.C. Code 1-13-80(A)(4).

Is sexual orientation or hairstyle protected under South Carolina employment law?

The list in S.C. Code 1-13-80(A)(1) is race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin and disability; it does not include sexual orientation, gender identity or hairstyle. A 2025 hair-texture bill (bill 584 of the 126th session) was introduced in the Senate and referred to committee; it is not law. Federal law is separate: in Bostock v. Clayton County (2020), the U.S. Supreme Court held that an employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender violates Title VII, and how far that reaches harassment claims is contested.

Is it illegal to retaliate against an employee for reporting harassment in South Carolina?

S.C. Code 1-13-80(F) makes it an unlawful employment practice for an employer to discriminate against an employee or applicant for opposing a practice the chapter makes unlawful or for making a charge, testifying, assisting or participating in an investigation, proceeding or hearing under the chapter.