Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) and Anti-Discrimination Essentials

For all employees and volunteers: know your federal EEO rights and duties, spot discrimination, handle accommodation requests and speak up safely.

For: All employees and volunteers in US workplaces, including frontline staff, team leads and nonprofit volunteers

  • 2 contact hours
  • 8 modules
  • 9 interactives
  • 4 job aids
  • Updated October 7, 2026

What you will be able to do

  • Identify the federal EEO laws, the employers they cover, the protected characteristics they list, and whether a rule comes from law, agency guidance, state law or employer policy.
  • Classify workplace situations as disparate treatment, disparate impact, quid pro quo or hostile environment harassment, or retaliation.
  • Recognize disability, religious and pregnancy-related accommodation requests and respond within your role, including routing and confidentiality.
  • Determine whether a diversity or development practice raises risk under Title VII and the 2025 EEOC/DOJ technical assistance, and apply job-related decision habits that limit bias.
  • Report and escalate discrimination concerns through internal channels and external agencies within filing deadlines, and avoid or report retaliation.

This course explains the US federal equal employment opportunity (EEO) laws in plain language: Title VII, the ADEA, the Equal Pay Act, the ADA, GINA and the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. You will learn who is protected, how disparate treatment, disparate impact, harassment and retaliation differ, how accommodation requests work, and how to report a concern. Every module uses a realistic US workplace scenario and ends with a practice check.

It is built for everyone on the payroll or volunteer roster, not just managers. If you interview, schedule, train, work alongside or serve other people, these rules shape your day. Managers who need investigation and leadership duties should pair it with our Inclusive Leadership course (#120); employers in states with harassment-training mandates should see course #119.

What makes it different: it separates law from agency guidance and employer policy, and it is date-stamped for the 2025-2026 shifts in federal enforcement, including the March 2025 EEOC/DOJ technical assistance on DEI-related discrimination, the April 2025 executive order on disparate impact and the January 2026 rescission of the EEOC's 2024 harassment guidance. You leave with a workplace checklist, a policy starter, a scenario worksheet and a state quick-reference.

What you’ll be able to do Monday morning

  1. Name the federal protected characteristics and check your state's additions.
  2. Rewrite a job posting or interview question so it asks about the job, not the person.
  3. Route any medical, religious or pregnancy-related request to HR the same day and keep the details private.
  4. Review a mentoring, ERG or development program for eligibility rules based on a protected characteristic.
  5. Document a concern with dates, words and witnesses, and report it through the right channel.
  6. Treat anyone who has complained or served as a witness exactly as before.

Curriculum

8 modules · 30 lessons · about 2 contact hours

01Why do EEO laws exist, and who do they protect?Free preview14 min
  1. What are equal employment opportunity laws for?
  2. Which federal laws make up the EEO framework?
  3. Does the law protect everyone, or only some groups?
  4. How do state and local laws change the picture?
  • Matching activity: Match the federal law to what it does

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

02What counts as discrimination: different treatment or unequal impact?15 min
  1. What is disparate treatment?
  2. What is disparate impact?
  3. How do equal pay, age, disability and genetic rules fit in?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the issues in a job posting
  • Sort activity: Treatment, impact or neither?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

03When does workplace conduct become unlawful harassment?14 min
  1. What makes harassment a form of discrimination?
  2. How do you judge 'severe or pervasive'?
  3. Who can harass, and when is the employer responsible?
  4. What does harassment look like beyond sexual conduct?
  • Decision tree: Is it harassment, and what should happen next?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

04What is retaliation, and why does it trip up so many workplaces?13 min
  1. What does the law mean by retaliation?
  2. What counts as protected activity?
  3. What does retaliation look like in real life?
  4. What if the complaint turns out to be unfounded?
  • Ethics dilemma: Named in a complaint: what now?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

05How do accommodations work for disability, religion and pregnancy?15 min
  1. Which laws require accommodation, and how do they compare?
  2. What starts the accommodation process?
  3. What did Groff v. DeJoy change about religious accommodation?
  4. What can an employer ask for, and what else may apply?
  • Branching scenario: An accommodation request on a busy shift

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

06Which diversity practices are lawful, and what does the evidence say about bias?15 min
  1. What did the 2025 EEOC and DOJ technical assistance say?
  2. So what is generally lawful?
  3. What does research actually say about unconscious bias?
  • Spot the issue: Spot the risks in a program memo

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

07Where does EEO law show up in everyday decisions?14 min
  1. Which interview questions cause problems, and what should you ask instead?
  2. How do schedules, assignments and appearance rules raise EEO issues?
  3. Why does writing down the reason matter so much?
  4. How does EEO law apply to everyday pay decisions?
  • Matching activity: Which law does this question put at risk?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 2-question knowledge check

08How do you speak up, report and escalate a concern?14 min
  1. What can you do in the moment?
  2. How should you report inside your organization?
  3. What are your options outside the organization, and how long do you have?
  4. What should you do when a coworker confides in you?
  • Self-assessment: How ready are you to speak up?

Diagram · In practice checklist · 3-question knowledge check

Final assessment: 23 questions, 75% to pass, then your certificate

Try it now, no account needed

An accommodation request on a busy shift

A branching scenario from this course. Your choices are not saved.

Free sample activity

An accommodation request on a busy shift

You are the assistant store manager at a pharmacy in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Serafina Ferraro, a pharmacy technician, catches you between deliveries.

Inside the course

Practice activities

  • Matching activity2
  • Spot the issue2
  • Sort activity1
  • Decision tree1
  • Ethics dilemma1
  • Branching scenario1
  • Self-assessment1

Job aids you keep

  • Everyday EEO Workplace ChecklistChecklist
  • EEO and Anti-Discrimination Policy StarterPolicy starter
  • EEO Situation Analysis WorksheetWorksheet
  • Federal and State EEO Quick ReferenceReference sheet

Credit and approval status

Certificate of completion

Completing this course earns a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction (0.2 CEU equivalent at 10 contact hours per CEU). The course is not currently approved or accredited by SHRM, HRCI, IACET or any licensing board, state agency or accreditor, and it is not a state-mandated harassment training edition. Check with your employer, professional body or state agency whether it meets your specific requirement.

Pathways we may pursue for this course include SHRM Professional Development Credits (PDCs), HRCI recertification credit and IACET accreditation. None of these approvals exists today; until one is granted and shown on the course page, the course awards a certificate of completion only.

Our full approvals list

Questions about this course

Does this course carry continuing education, SHRM or HRCI credit?

No. You earn a certificate of completion for 2 contact hours of instruction. The course is not currently approved by SHRM, HRCI, IACET or any licensing board or state agency. We may pursue those approvals in the future and will show any approval on the course page once granted. Ask your employer or professional body whether they accept this certificate.

Does this course satisfy my state's harassment training requirement?

No, not on its own. This is a federal EEO essentials course for all staff. States such as California, New York, Illinois, Connecticut, Delaware and Maine set their own harassment training content, length and frequency rules. See our multi-state Sexual Harassment Prevention course (#119) and confirm with your state agency or employer.

Who should take this course?

All employees and volunteers in US workplaces: frontline staff, team leads, office workers, care staff and nonprofit volunteers. It focuses on what every worker needs to know and do. Managers responsible for investigations and team leadership should also take Inclusive Leadership (#120).

How long does it take, and can I stop and come back?

Plan on about two hours, including eight short modules, interactive exercises, knowledge checks and a 23-question final assessment with a 75 percent pass mark. Your progress saves as you go, so you can complete it in several sittings and retake the assessment with a fresh question set if needed.

Is the course up to date with the 2025-2026 federal changes?

Yes, as of 10/07/2026. It covers the March 2025 EEOC/DOJ technical assistance on DEI-related discrimination, Executive Order 14281 on disparate impact, Ames v. Ohio (2025) and the EEOC's January 2026 rescission of its 2024 harassment guidance. This area changes quickly, so we review the course at least every 12 months and after major changes.

Is this legal advice?

No. The course is general education. It explains the law and points you to your employer's policy, HR, government agencies and employment attorneys. If you face a filing deadline or a dispute, contact the EEOC, your state agency or a qualified employment lawyer.

This course is general education and training awareness on US equal employment opportunity and anti-discrimination law from CE Courses Hub. It is not legal, medical or professional advice and does not replace your employer's policies, your licensing board's rules, or advice from a qualified professional. Completing it earns a certificate of completion for the stated contact hours; it is not approved or accredited by any licensing board, state agency or accreditor unless an approval is shown on the course page. Check with your board, employer or state agency whether this course meets your specific requirement.