Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and Darlene Walters, Intervening v. Metropolitan Educational Enterprises, Incorporated, and Leonard Bieber

**What Happened** Darlene Walters claimed her employer, Metropolitan Educational Enterprises, retaliated against her in violation of federal employment discrimination laws. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) supported her case and sued the company on her behalf. **What the Court Decided** The court dismissed the case entirely, ruling that Metropolitan Educational Enterprises was too small to be covered by Title VII, the main federal law that protects workers from discrimination and retaliation. The company didn't have enough employees to meet the legal requirement of 15 or more workers. Courts use a specific "working day" method to count employees - they look at how many people were actually working on each business day during a 20-week period. Metropolitan Educational Enterprises fell short of this threshold. **Why This Matters for Workers** This case highlights an important limitation in federal employment protections. If your employer has fewer than 15 employees, you generally cannot sue them under Title VII for discrimination or retaliation based on race, gender, religion, or national origin. However, workers at smaller companies may still have protections under state laws, which often cover smaller employers and provide similar protections against workplace discrimination.