Virginia has made several important tweaks to its state-level Human Rights Act, changing its definitions for “employers” and “places of public accommodation”, while increasing the timeframe for filing unlawful discrimination claims. In this compliance alert, we look at the detail and consider next steps for businesses operating in the state.
Summary
Virginia Senate Bill 637 took effect on July 1, 2026, with several changes to the scope of the Virginia Human Rights Act (VHRA). These changes include:
- Employees now have two years to file a discrimination complaint with the Virginia Office of Civil Rights, up from 300 days.
- Educational institutions have been added as a “place of public accommodation” in the law’s initial definitions. The previous definition only included “all places or businesses offering or holding out to the general public goods, services, privileges, facilities, advantages, or accommodations.” The term is an important one in the code’s definition of what constitutes unlawful discrimination.
- The removal of existing limits on age-related discrimination claims, which were previously restricted to employers with five to 20 employees only.
- The threshold for defining an employer under the VHRA has been reduced from 15 employees to five employees.
Who Is Impacted and What Actions Are Required?
These amendments are now in effect and apply to all employers operating in the State of Virginia with five or more employees.
For most businesses, no specific action is required. The following should, however, be considered:
- Larger organizations that haven’t previously accounted for age-related discrimination in their processes and programs should now do so
- Educational institutions should consider how the Virginia Human Rights Act applies to them, if they haven’t done so previously
- The law is also newly relevant to small businesses with 5 to 15 employees, who must now comply with the nondiscrimination provisions within
Further to this, the extended discrimination filing period should be considered as a timely reminder of the importance of maintaining thorough and accurate records that can be referred to in the event of a claim.
How Affirmity Can Help
Affirmity’s software and services help organizations proactively track and analyze workforce trends and uncover the statistical indicators that suggest patterns of discrimination. Learn more about our workforce analytics and benchmarking analysis software and our Talent Decisions software module. We can also perform a risk assessment of key areas of your business (including DEI programs and artificial intelligence use).
Protect your organization and learn more about what Affirmity has to offer: Contact our team of experts today.
About the Author
Kim Hendon oversees account management and sales for Affirmity. She is responsible for building successful, long-term partnerships with clients and generating new business. Having served with the company for more than 25 years, Ms. Hendon has in-depth knowledge and broad experience in all areas of workforce analytics and HR compliance.
Ms. Hendon assists clients with the planning and development of workforce compliance and non-discrimination programs, as well as employee engagement initiatives. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication and a Master’s in Business Administration. Connect with her on LinkedIn.