June 2022: Governor of Tennessee Signs CROWN Act into Law

Update Applicable to:
All employers in the state of Tennessee

What happened?
On May 27, 2022, Governor Lee signed Senate Bill 0136 (SB 0136) into law. This bill, also known as the “CROWN Act” would prohibit employers from discriminating against an employee’s hair.

What are the details?
Effective July 1, 2022, employers are prohibited from adopting a policy that does not permit an employee to wear the employee’s hair in braids, locs, twists, or another manner that is part of the cultural identity of the employee’s ethnic group or that is a physical characteristic of the employee’s ethnic group.

For more information, please see the links below:

Senate Bill 0136 (SB 0136)

What do employers need to do?
Employers should review the bill provided above and make possible adjustments to their policies to ensure they are in compliance with the new law.