Employment discrimination (or workplace discrimination) is discrimination in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, and compensation. It includes various types of harassment.

Many jurisdictions prohibit some types of employment discrimination, often by forbidding discrimination based on certain traits ("protected categories"). In other cases, the law may require discrimination against certain groups.

In places where it is illegal, discrimination often takes subtler forms, such as wage discrimination and requirements with disparate impact on certain groups. In addition, employees sometimes suffer retaliation for opposing workplace discrimination or for reporting violations to the authorities.

Like most discrimination, employment discrimination may occur intentionally or unintentionally, because of prejudice or ignorance.

Laws often prohibit discrimination on the basis of:

Some jurisdictions prohibit employment discrimination against other social groups that have legal protections. They include discrimination or harassment based on socioeconomic class, height or weight if not relevant to employment, and provincial/regional origin.