If you are an employee of DHS you may file complaints regarding adverse personnel actions, hostile work environment, sexual harassment (including same sex), and harassment (workplace bullying).

If you are an applicant for employment with DHS you may file a complaint for failure to hire.

If you are a customer who believes you have been discriminated against because of your age, ancestry, color, creed, marital status, mental or physical disability, national origin, race, religious affiliation, belief or opinion, sex, or sexual orientation in the provision of services, activities, or programs (i.e., applying for benefits, participating in work program activities or programs), you can file a civil rights complaint.

All complaints must be based on your belief that the discriminatory action was taken because of your age, ancestry, color, creed, marital status, mental or physical disability, national origin, race; religious affiliation, belief or opinion; sex, or sexual orientation.

You cannot, however, file a complaint with OEPE and file a grievance on the same issue. You must choose to file either a complaint with OEPE, or to file a grievance.

If you believe you have been discriminated against because of your age, ancestry, color, creed, marital status, mental or physical disability, national origin, race; religious affiliation, belief or opinion; sex, or sexual orientation, you may contact OEPE at 410-767-7861 or at Email: [email protected]. If you do not believe that you have been discriminated against, but would like to file a complaint, you may contact the DHS Customer Service Center of DHS at 1-800-332-6347.

You may call the office at 410-767-7861 and request a complaint form. You may also send an Email: [email protected] to request a Customer Complaint form.

You must file within 30 calendar days of the alleged act, or within 30 calendar days of the date you knew or reasonably should have known that an act of discrimination had occurred.

Your complaint will be assigned to an investigator who will interview you, your witnesses (if any), the Respondent and the Respondent’s witnesses (if any), and review any other pertinent evidence such as personnel files. The investigator will then analyze all of the collected evidence and issue a written determination of Probable Cause or No Probable Cause.

If you are an employee, as the Complainant (the person filing the charge), you may appeal, in writing, to the Department of Budget and Management, Office of Personnel Services and Benefits, Employee Relations Division, Room 608, 301 West Preston Street, Baltimore, MD 21201. Your appeal must be made within ten (10) calendar days of your receipt of the determination.

You may file a complaint with the:

1. Maryland Commission on Civil Rights (MCCR), 6 St. Paul Street, 9th floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, Email: [email protected], (410) 767-8600;
2. Maryland Commission on Civil Rights (MCCR), 6 St. Paul Street, 9th floor, Baltimore, Maryland 21202, Email: [email protected], (410) 767-8600;
3. U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), 950 Pennsylvania Avenue N. W., Washington, DC 20530-0001, Civil Rights Division online reporting portal: https://civilrights.justice.gov/report/ (202) 514-3847; or
4. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Civil Rights Centralized Case Management Operations, 200 Independence Avenue, S.W., Room 509F HHH Bldg. Washington, D.C. 20201, Email: [email protected], 1-800-421-3481

Please check with these agencies regarding any other rights you may have under their respective statutes.

Federal and State law, as well as, State and Departmental policy prohibits persons from being retaliated against for either filing a complaint of discrimination, or cooperating with an investigation of such a complaint. If you believe that you are being retaliated against you should contact the OEPE immediately.

An employer is only required by law to make reasonable accommodations for a qualified individual with a disability. Employees – please contact either your local ADA liaison or OEPE to speak with the ADA Coordinator.

Customers can submit a reasonable accommodation request by completing: 1) reasonable accommodation request form; 2) p.12 of the MDHS FIA Application for Assistance form CP-9701; 3) by calling or walking-in to their Local Department of Social Services (LDSS) office; or 4) online via the Maryland Benefits Consumer Portal.

Any individual who believes they have been discriminated against on the basis of disability in the provision of services, activities, programs or benefits by an LDSS should, if possible, try to resolve the issue locally with the supervisor or director of the program or services. If this informal attempt at resolution is unsuccessful, the individual should follow the steps outlined in the MDHS Grievance Procedures* and file a complaint with the appropriate LDSS Customer Access Coordinator (CAC), or designee.

Under the ADA an individual with a disability is defined as a person who has: a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities; a record of such an impairment; or is regarded as having such an impairment. Whether or not an impairment qualifies as a disability under the ADA is determined on a case by case basis.

Under the ADA a major life activity is defined as activities that an average person can perform with little or no difficulty such as, walking, seeing, speaking, hearing, breathing, learning, performing manual tasks, working, etc.

EEOC’s technical guidelines on the ADA defines a qualified individual with a disability as, an individual with a disability who meets the skill, experience, education, and other job-related requirements of a position held or desired, and who, with or without reasonable accommodation, can perform the essential functions of a job.

Complaints are reported on a need to know basis. The Respondent has a right to know that a complaint has been filed against him or her, and who made the complaint. Witnesses are asked to respect the confidential nature of investigations. Employees of the OEPE are required to maintain confidentiality.

*The MDHS Grievance Procedures were established to meet the requirements of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. They may be used by anyone who wishes to file a complaint alleging discrimination based on disability in the provision of services, activities, programs, or benefits by MDHS. Use of this grievance process does not preclude the complainant from filing a complaint with the designated federal agency or filing a lawsuit for injunctive relief and damages. An individual may choose to pursue any or all of these methods.