Timeliness
The timeliness of a charge may hinge on whether or not the sexual harassment in question stems from a tangible employment action or from conduct creating a hostile work environment. See Railroad Passenger Corp. v. Morgan, 536 U.S. 101 (2002). A "discrete act" occurs on the day that it happens and a prospective client must file a charge within the requisite 180 or 300 days from that date, depending on the state where the conduct occurs. In contrast, the Court noted in Morgan, "hostile work environment claims are different in kind from discrete acts. Their very nature involves repeated conduct." For this reason, the Court held, hostile work environment claims constitute a single unlawful employment practice, and as long as one act occurs within the actionable period, all the acts contributing to the hostile environment may be considered for determining liability.
Sourse: Sexual Harassment Law: A Brief Introduction for New Practitioners by David J. Marshall and Justine F. Andronici.
See also: Anti-discrimination law; Discrimination; Harassment; Hostile Environment; Liability; Reasonable Person Standardant; Same-sex harassment; Sex; Sexual Harassment; Sexual harassment policy; Sexual misconduct; Sexual orientation; Single-incident sexual harassment; Stereotype; Tangible employment action; Third-party sexual harassment