You can retain counsel at any time but why would you?

nothing you have here even suggest discrimination was involved.......

if you do NOT have a contract that specifically states otherwise you are employed ":at-will" which means you could have been fired for no reason at all let alone the one they gave you.

your first step is to file for unemployment if you are not determined to be eligible then hiring an attorney will be an expensive waste of time.

if you are determined to be eligible that means the employer could NOT prove the had "cause" to terminate you. that does NOT mean that it was illegal to fire you or they did anything wrong by firing it just means they did not have cause to terminate you.

if they can not prove cause then you may (NOT do but MAY) be able to prove something else was happening here, since at no point have you explained what it is you see as discrimination i can't even imagine what it is you would be proving but assuming there is something you have not told us if you are eligible for unemployment that gives whatever your claim may be a little credibility.....

if you are denied eligibility for unemployment then you need to just move on because the employer will have already proven they had a cause to terminate you which means the state has agreed NOTHING was illegal, unethical or inappropriate....

i seriously doubt the EEOC will even take this to the first step which is mediation unless there is A LOT you are not telling us here........ if they go to mediation you will have a good idea of the next step. at no time do you have to hire an attorney, you will definitely need one if you disagree with the settlement the EEOC presents, if you don't like their settlement they will give you a "right-sue" letter.

this letter does NOT mean you have a case, it means one of two things:

either the EEOC thinks you have no case or

they believe you do have a case but you don't like what the EEOC has presented as a settlement therefore with the letter you may then proceed on your own.

if the EEOC believes there is a violation the EEOC will do an in-depth investigation and prosecute the case, they will settle this for you at no cost to you.......

the only time there is a cost is if you decide to proceed on your own, and you hire an attorney.

if you check the EEOC site you will see the number of complaints they receive each year, how many they settle, and how much they have settled for. these numbers are broken down by type of discrimination.

MOST of the complaints filed with the EEOC are settled by the EEOC......

understand you can retain counsel at any time and if you feel it is appropriate then do so, i am not trying to talk out of hiring a lawyer, i think from what is posted here it would be a total WASTE of time and money but only you can make that decision. i have been wrong more then once in my life and i am confident i will be wrong at some point in the future......

BUT if you decide to retain counsel be VERY clear about the payment structure, there is a great misconception that attorneys will work on contingency and if you don't win the attorney does NOT get paid, this is NOT true. contingency attorneys get their "fees" paid out of a settlement if/when you win but they will charge you for ALL "out-of-pocket" expenses win-or-lose........ these expenses are often more then their fee.... expenses can include anything from making copies to the fees to file in civil court, phone, travel, meals, transcription, depositions, mediators, service fees, mail, etcetera... etcetera...

If you have already filed a complaint with the EEOC you must wait on them before you can hire a lawyer.

Normally, you must wait for the EEOC if your charge is based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability. At the completion of their investigation, you'll receive a right to sue letter. This gives you permission to file a lawsuit in court and you must do so within 90 days. Age discrimination is a little different. I say normally because you can request the right to sue notice earlier.

This doesn't mean you can't consult with or hire an attorney (you just can't file in court).

Now that you've been fired, make sure you update the EEOC because you now have retaliation.

The EEOC will be able to help you with any questions about the process, etc. Below is website link

How do you figure there was anything the EEOC would get involved in? There's nothing in your question to indicate you have an EEOC complaint.

Writing you up for things that were part of your job? Well, that's often what people get written up for. And if you meant "weren't" part of your job, if you are an employee additional tasks can be added to your job if your boss wants to.

Unless there's something you aren't saying, an attorney isn't going to be able to help you. Your boss can fire you even if your performance was satisfactory, they don't have to show that it wasn't.