What a discrimination claim can recover
Under Title VII, the ADA and related federal laws, a worker who proves discrimination or retaliation can recover:
- Back pay: lost wages and benefits from the job loss to the resolution, minus earnings from new work
- Front pay: future lost pay when reinstatement is not practical
- Compensatory damages: emotional distress and other non-wage losses
- Punitive damages: for malice or reckless indifference (not available against government employers)
Federal damage caps
Compensatory and punitive damages combined are capped by employer size (42 U.S.C. § 1981a(b)(3)):
| Employees | Combined cap |
|---|---|
| 15 – 100 | $50,000 |
| 101 – 200 | $100,000 |
| 201 – 500 | $200,000 |
| More than 500 | $300,000 |
Back pay and front pay are not capped. Many state laws allow uncapped damages, and claims under 42 U.S.C. § 1981 for race discrimination are not capped.
Short deadlines
A charge must usually be filed with the EEOC within 180 days, or 300 days where a state agency also enforces a discrimination law. Back pay is limited to two years before the charge.
Questions people ask
What is the average employment discrimination settlement?
It varies widely. Many settle for less than a year’s pay, while strong cases with large employers reach far higher.
Are discrimination settlements taxable?
Back pay is taxable as wages, and emotional distress damages are generally taxable unless tied to a physical injury.