R.I. Gen. Laws
Rhode Island General Laws

R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-5-3 (2026)

Declaration of policy

✓ current as of July 2026
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It is declared to be the public policy of this state to foster the employment of all individuals in this state in accordance with their fullest capacities, regardless of their race or color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, age, or country of ancestral origin, and to safeguard their right to obtain and hold employment without such discrimination.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 13 cases, 1976–2014 · leading case: Carmella Bucci v. Hurd Buick Pontiac GMC Truck, LLC, 85 A.3d 1160 (R.I. 2014).
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Carmella Bucci v. Hurd Buick Pontiac GMC Truck, LLC, 85 A.3d 1160 (R.I. 2014). · cites it 8× “” Section 28-5-3. To analyze employment discrimination cases under FEPA, this Court has looked to analogous federal anti-discrimination law.”
Providence Journal Co. v. Mason, 359 A.2d 682 (R.I. 1976). · cites it 3× “Mason buttresses her argument by noting that §28-5-38 mandates that the provisions of the Fair Employment Practices Act be “construed liberally for the accomplishment of the purposes thereof” and by further noting that the declared policy of the Fair Employment Practices Act is…”
Ctr. for Behavioral Health, Rhode Island, Inc. v. Barros, 710 A.2d 680 (R.I. 1998). · cites it 2× “Section 28-5-3. To that end § 28-5-7, under which Barros filed her claim, states: “It shall be an unlawful employment practice: *685 (1) For any employer: (i) To refuse to hire any applicant for employment because of his or her race or color, religion, sex, handicap, age, sexual…”
Rathbun v. Autozone, Inc., 361 F.3d 62 (1st Cir. 2004). “It establishes a comprehensive scheme for the vindication of the rights it protects.”
Folan v. State/dcyf, 723 A.2d 287 (R.I. 1999). · cites it 2× “Section 28-5-3. “Such discrimination foments domestic strife and unrest, threatens the rights and privileges of the inhabitants of the state, and undermines the foundations of a fi’ee democratic state.”
Horn v. S. Union Co., 927 A.2d 292 (R.I. 2007). · cites it 2× “In the employment context, the FEPA and the RICRA may coexist with distinct timeliness requirements, yet without any undue dissonance, each serving its expressed purpose: i.e., with respect to the FEPA, "to foster the employment of all individuals in this state in accordance…”
Rhode Island State Police v. Madison, 508 A.2d 678 (R.I. 1986). · cites it 3× “” Section 28-5-3. In this case, defendants were not in any way responsible for the situation that brought about the termination of proceedings before the commission.”
Fud's, Inc. v. State, 727 A.2d 692 (R.I. 1999). · cites it 2× “” Section 28-5-3. Although the commission’s ability to order an employer to reinstate with back pay an employee who has suffered job discrimination may constitute.”
Shoucair v. Brown Univ., 917 A.2d 418 (R.I. 2007). “General Laws 1956 § 28-5-3 declares that it is "the public policy of this state to foster the employment of all individuals in this state in accordance with their fullest capacities, regardless of their race or color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or…”
In Re Rhode Island Comm'n for Human Rights, 472 A.2d 1211 (R.I. 1984). “The General Assembly, in speaking of the purposes of the commission, certainly used precise language when in § 28-5-3, as amended by P.L.1981, ch. 167, it said: “It is hereby declared to be the public policy of this state to foster the employment of all individuals in this state…”
Wyss v. Gen. Dynamics Corp., 24 F. Supp. 2d 202 (D.R.I. 1998). “§ 28-5-3. Under FEPA, employers are liable.”
Foxon Packaging Corp. v. Aetna Cas. & Sur. Co., 905 F. Supp. 1139 (D.R.I. 1995). · cites it 2× “G.L. § 28-5-3 provides: “It is hereby declared to be the public policy of this state to foster the employment of all individuals in this state in accordance with their fullest capacities, regardless of their race or color, religion, sex, handicap, age, or country of ancestral…”
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